Background/Question/Methods Ecosystem accounting is promoted as a promising way to make nature count, but questions remain about how to count and for whom. The United Nation’s System of Environmental Economic Accounting – Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA EA) is a unique system in that it provides a connection between ecosystem services and economic statistics like those in the System of National Accounts. One of the primary objectives of SEEA EA is to provide comprehensive and consistent information on ecosystems and their benefits to the economy and society. Dozens of countries, including Canada, have already started testing and implementing SEEA EA, but the extent to which approaches across jurisdictions are consistent has not been explicitly investigated. How are countries navigating differently through the implementation of SEEA EA? We undertook a scoping review of the literature and case studies of 12 jurisdictions to address this question.
Results/Conclusions We found that while the aim of SEEA EA is to provide a consistent approach, there are many variations between jurisdictions related to the actors involved, the stated objectives and the information used and produced. By taking different scientific approaches, and including different voices in the process, jurisdictions can wind up with very different information on how nature counts. Given the early stage in implementation, this is an advantageous time to consider carefully what these variations could mean for the future of SEEA EA. My presentation will conclude with 5 insights for countries undertaking SEEA EA and the ecology community more broadly to make the most of this unique moment to move toward novel approaches of accounting for the roles of nature.
