Friend or foe? Exploring the role of the ecosystem services concept in environmental governance

The ecosystem services (ES) concept has emerged as a major theme in environmental research and governance in recent decades (Chaudhary et al., 2015; Costanza et al., 2017). Proponents of the concept highlight its potential to alert policy makers, businesses, and citizens to our dependence on the natural world. Yet since its inception the concept has been plagued with criticisms of putting market prices on, and ultimately commodifying, nature. This thesis aims to explore debates and tensions within the ES concept through a series of conceptual discussions and empirical investigations. What is revealed is that ES is neither a silver bullet, nor a grave threat. It is a deeply ambiguous concept that takes multiple forms in the different contexts in which it is applied. Through a case study in Scottish inshore governance I show how the concept is shaped by existing institutions, norms, and policy priorities. Rather than dismissing the concept then, what is important is guiding its deployment to ensure it reflects the complex ways in which humans live in, with, and from the non-human world. To this end, I identify guiding principles for the ES concept including inter-and transdisciplinary working and of the consideration of pluralistic environmental values. With these principles in mind, the rest of the thesis is given over to methodological considerations. I first make the case for a post-normal science framing in ES research. This post-normal approach is then demonstrated through the application of a Deliberative Democratic Monetary Valuation in the context of marine planning. This thesis is therefore both descriptive and prescriptive, and ultimately intends to help guide the operationalisation of the ES concept

Ecosystem services as a post-normal field of science

The ecosystem services (ES) concept is increasingly being integrated in to policy and decision making at all scales of environmental governance. Yet ES assessments are often characterised by high levels of uncertainty, are heavily value-laden and seek to contribute towards time-critical decision making and policy development. We assess the suitability of post-normal science as a broad scientific framework to guide research practice in such situations. Results of a literature review on the current use of post-normal science in ES literature are presented, and we discuss how the framing can contribute to three emergent threads in ES assessment: managing uncertainty, participation and knowledge validation, and dealing with value plurality. We conclude by arguing for the adoption of a post-normal science posture within ES research, due to its broad applicability, consistent philosophical underpinning and in-built reflexivity. A short list of questions is presented to help guide the application of a post-normal approach to ES research

Navigating pluralism: understanding perceptions of the ecosystem services concept

Being open to multiple interpretations allows the ecosystem services concept to operate as a boundary object, facilitating communication and cooperation between different user groups. Yet there is a risk the resultant pluralism limits the capacity of ecosystem services assessments to directly inform decision and policy making, and that the concept could be used to support environmentally or socially harmful activities. Here, we report results from a large mixed methods survey conducted among academics, policymakers and practitioners working in the field of ecosystem services across Europe. We use these results to explore the trade-off that exists between the role of ecosystem services as a boundary object and the needs of policy and decision makers of more standardisation. We conclude this can be done by working towards the standardisation of ecosystem service assessments within specific jurisdictions, whilst maintaining forums for debate, collaboration, and critical reflection within the broader ecosystem services community. We also aim to deduce guiding principles to ensure the ecosystem services concept is not used to support detrimental activities. The consideration of shared and cultural values, the expansion of inter- and transdisciplinary work and the integration of the concept of sustainability are identified as valuable guiding principles to this end.</p

Participant perceptions of different forms of deliberative monetary valuation : Comparing democratic monetary valuation and deliberative democratic monetary valuation in the context of regional marine planning

As conceptual and theoretical discussions on environmental valuation approaches have advanced there is growing interest in the impact that valuation has on decision making. The perceived legitimacy of the outputs of valuation studies is seen as one factor influencing their impact on policy decisions. One element of this is ensuring that participants of valuation processes see the results as legitimate and would be willing to accept decisions based on these findings. Here, we test the perceived legitimacy to participants of two approaches to deliberative monetary valuation, deliberated preferences and Deliberative Democratic Monetary Valuation, in the context of marine planning in the Clyde estuary in Scotland. We compare and contrast deliberated preference and deliberative democratic monetary valuation and track their emergence as responses to critiques of conventional stated preference approaches. We then present the results of our case study where we found that deliberative democratic monetary valuation produced valuations that were perceived as more legitimate that deliberated preference as the basis for decision making by those involved in the valuation process. </jats:p

Streetfront:Stories about Perseverance, Resilience and Running in the Downtown Eastside.

This book is a collection of stories about students that have attended Streetfront, an alternative high school program located on Vancouver’s East Side, Canada. Through running, they find the perseverance and dedication they need in their lives

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead