In recent years, efforts have proliferated to develop international frameworks, strategies and standards concerning natural capital accounting (Milligan et al. 2014). Relevant efforts fall into three broad and interrelated categories: legal and political commitments, development of standardized technical methods, and capacity and knowledge building partnerships. These are discussed below.
First, legal and political commitments relating to natural capital accounting have been established through a wide variety of international instruments, including under the auspices of several multilateral environmental agreements. For example: The 193 States Parties to the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) have committed, in one of the 2011–2020 Aichi Biodiversity Targets, to integrate ‘biodiversity values’ into their national accounting. In October 2014, the CBD meeting of the conference of the parties (COP 12) produced the publication “Ecosystem Natural Capital Accounting (ENCA): A Quick Start Package” which is currently under experimental implementation. The “Agenda 21” outcome document of the 1992 ‘Rio’ UN Conference on Sustainable Development explicitly characterizes natural and biological resources as capital assets, and sets out action plans for ‘establishing systems for integrated environmental and economic accounting’. “The Future We Want” outcome document of the subsequent 2012 ‘Rio+20’ Conference reaffirms international commitments to Agenda 21 and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, recognizes the importance of ecosystem services as ‘critical foundations for sustainable development and well-being’ and requests the UN Statistical Commission to launch a programme of work concerning ‘broader measures of progress to complement GDP’.
From 2015 onwards the 2030 Agenda (UN 2015) is an important focal point for such cooperative efforts, especially those focused on building political awareness and will. The Agenda preamble—including the set of SDGs—entitled ‘Transforming our world’ was adopted by UN member States at the September 2015 summit. It is expected to fundamentally influence international politics and funding for sustainable development, thereby shaping future policy efforts and momentum to account for natural capital.
As a result of the intensive intergovernmental negotiations leading to the 2030 Agenda that commenced back in January 2015, a considerable status is attributed to natural capital and natural capital accounting within the Agenda and formative SDGs: ‘32. We recognise that social and economic development depends on the sustainable management of our planet’s natural resources.’ For the first time, the UN General Assembly Open Working Group recognizes the insufficiency of currently available measures: ‘48. […]We are committed to developing broader measures of progress to complement gross domestic product (GDP).’ This new wording represents the outcome of core negotiations and discussions in stakeholder consultations via, e.g. the UN Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform.
Natural capital accounting features in the targets accompanying the SDGs, in similar fashion to the existing international legal and political commitments discussed above, including the CBD, associated Aichi Targets, and outcome documents of the Rio and Rio+20 Conferences. Goal 15 (concerning terrestrial ecosystems, forests, desertification, land degradation and biodiversity loss) is accompanied by a target to ‘By 2020, integrate ecosystem and biodiversity values into national and local planning, development processes, poverty reduction strategies and accounts (15.9)’. It is unfortunate that this terrestrial ecosystems-related target is not complemented by an equivalent for Goal 14 on ocean ecosystems and marine resources (UN 2015).
Second, legal and political commitments have stimulated efforts to develop standardized technical methods for natural capital accounting. Noteworthy are efforts by the World Bank and the UN, as well as the Inclusive Wealth Project. The UN System of Environmental–Economic Accounting (SEEA) was first published in 1993 by the UN Statistical Commission to implement commitments agreed at the 1992 Rio Conference. Significant revisions were published in 2003 and 2012, and in 2013 the SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA-EEA: European Commission et al. 2013), for addressing the living, biotic components of natural capital. The SEEA is designed to supplement the System of National Accounts, and contains internationally agreed standards for producing comparable statistics concerning the environment and its relationship with the economy (UN et al. 2014). The World Bank (2011) data catalogue hosts the adjusted net saving and non-renewable resource rent indicators for the period 1970–2008. Adjusted net saving measures the rate of saving in an economy, after taking into account investments in human capital and depletion of natural resources, in an attempt to assess the sustainability of that economy. Also the Inclusive Wealth Project has produced a report on human capital in addition to the 2012 report on natural capital with the accompanying Inclusive Wealth Index (UNU–IHDP and UNEP 2012).
Third, implementation of SEEA and other relevant standards at a national level is now supported by several capacity and knowledge building partnerships. Since 2010 the World Bank has coordinated the Partnership for Wealth Accounting and the Valuation of Ecosystem Services (WAVES), which involves partners including UN Agencies, civil society representatives and national governments. WAVES provides technical support to several ‘Core Implementing Countries’ including: Botswana, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Indonesia, Madagascar, the Philippines and Rwanda, with the number of countries due to expand shortly. Other efforts include The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity Initiative (TEEB)—established in 2007 which focuses on knowledge synthesis and capacity building, and the Global Legislators Organization’s Natural Capital Initiative—established in 2012, focusing on knowledge sharing concerning legal and policy aspects of natural capital accounting. Also Goal 17 of the Agenda for Sustainable Development now involves implementation and global partnership, with targets on finances, technology and capacity-building aspects (UN 2015).