Blue Planet Prize Story：2017 winner Prof. Gretchen C. Daily：4. The value of nature

4. The value of nature

The natural capital project

Professor Daily worked hard to spread the concept of natural capital and the benefits we receive from nature as well, through the publication of papers and books. To extend this activity to raise awareness and encourage individuals, and make national governments and companies involved in the movement, she then decided to start a specific project, the Natural Capital Project (NatCap), in 2006.
This project fosters collaboration among companies and people in different countries, consideration of solutions to actual problems such as better ways to use lands, and facilitates the planning and execution of individual projects. Of course, she continues to help us realize the benefits we receive from nature and encourages us to seek the best way for both nature and people.

NatCap Team

NatCap Team, Professor Daily is on the far right.

Mapping the value of nature

When this project started, Professor Daily thought about the mapping of the value of nature.
We consider, for example, where the nature in each town that brings the most significant benefits is. How about that forest? How about that river? If we develop this land, how would it affect the nature in the area? She hoped to map this using computer simulation. If we have such software, it would be possible to see the state of natural capital at a glance and allow us to discuss what to do about specific areas of nature.

Thus, NatCap Team duly developed the computer software "InVEST." She used this software for the first time in Hawaii in 2011. Kamehameha Schools consulted with Professor Daily about the use of its land in Kawailoa. Professor Daily and the team used InVEST to simulate three patterns of land use - agriculture and forestry, subdivision, and biofuels - and input the data into InVest, then which resulted in a map. They then predicted the future value of the land, including carbon storage, water quality, water yield, and income for the town.
It revealed that agriculture and forestry was the best use of the land although the income was the lowest. Kamehameha Schools chose to use the land for agriculture and forestry. The American Planning Association recognized its efforts with the 2011 National Planning Excellence Award for Innovation in Sustaining Places, the most prestigious award in the area of sustainability.

The figure shows scenarios based on three patterns of land use

The figure shows scenarios based on three patterns of land use. Green shows the increase in value compared with the initial plan, and red shows debt. The one on the bottom is agriculture and forestry. Income (right) is the lowest, but it shows almost no debt on the left.

Professor Daily and the team have shown how useful it is to protect nature in an easy-to-visualize manner in more than 50 countries in 10 years.

A challenge in China

The most substantial natural capital project has been implemented in China. In 1998, the Yangtze River flooded and caused significant damage due to large-scale deforestation in the mountains. This caused the Chinese government to realize that their development had been responsible for environmental loss due to the lack of sufficient consideration for nature. This prompted them to start working on forest preservation and regeneration.

A meeting in China in 2017

NatCap agreed to cooperate with China. The Chinese government wanted to know whether what they had done to prevent flooding was helpful and whether their approaches brought benefits other than preventing floods, and lastly, the government was anxious to see what area it should protect and how in the future.
To answer these questions, Professor Daily and the team surveyed the changes in nature in China for the past ten years and analyzed them with InVEST. Fortunately, it revealed that their approaches were effective in essential areas such as flood and sandstorm control, securing water sources, land productivity, and reduction of CO2 emissions.

Distribution of ecosystem services conservation areas in China

Distribution of ecosystem services conservation areas in China shows the efficiency of their approaches.

Professor Daily was satisfied with the Chinese government's reaction. A country like China that had emphasized economic development had finally realized the environmental damage they had caused and the importance of investing in nature. She thinks this lesson can be applied in many other countries and regions.

Nature in China

Of course, there are many other issues to be addressed in China. Its ecosystems have deteriorated, and it will take a long time to restore them as Professor Daily says, "If we plant just one tree, pandas will not necessarily rush to live there."

China is expanding its national parks to restore its ecosystems. NatCap cooperates by conducting surveys to clarify the location of national parks for nature conservation and coexistence with people. Professor Daily and the team concluded that China should develop two types of nature reserves, one is away from biospheres inhabited by humans to preserve the rare and sensitive biodiversity, and the other is inside the biosphere inhabited by humans to protect the biodiversity that brings benefits for humans. This is an integration of the preservation of both countryside and untouched wildlands.

Humans and nature

NatCap will continue moving forward. They are planning to become more involved in urban development. Greater than 50% of the earth's population lives in urban areas, and this number will increase. Urban development is a significant threat to nature; however, Professor Daily thinks that incorporating nature into cities will allow us to coexist with nature more than ever. This is a considerable opportunity for humans.

Professor Daily sometimes wonders why she is working so hard. If she researches on organisms as a biologist, she would not be as busy as she is now.

She cannot, however, ignore the crisis that the world is encountering. In the old days when there were not as many people and no modern science or technology, people and nature coexisted in the right balance. However, the might that people have over nature has grown too powerful to control by themselves. Professor Daily is deeply concerned about this.

For that reason, she moves around the world to promote nature conservation. Although she feels sad and lonely leaving her two children and husband at home, everyone is supporting her dream. Her dream is to make the world a place where all children can enjoy playing outside in nature. To pass such a world to future generations, she keeps moving forward.

Carmen (L) and Luke (R)