Title: Ecosystem services valuation by pioneering companies

Authors: Pedro F. Gattás; José Guilherme F. De Campos; Simone R. Barakat; Renato J. Orsato

Addresses: Department of Production and Operations Management (POI), São Paulo School of Management (EAESP), Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV), Avenida 9 de Julho, 2029, Bela Vista, 01313-902, São Paulo, Brazil ' Department of Management, School of Economics, Management and Accounting, University of São Paulo (FEA-USP), 908 Avenida Professor Luciano Gualberto, Cidade Universitária, 05508-010, São Paulo, Brazil ' Department of Management, School of Economics, Management and Accounting, University of São Paulo (FEA-USP), 908 Avenida Professor Luciano Gualberto, Cidade Universitária, 05508-010, São Paulo, Brazil ' Department of Production and Operations Management (POI), São Paulo School of Management (EAESP), Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV), Avenida 9 de Julho, 2029, Bela Vista, 01313-902, São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract: This study aims to identify the reasons for companies to invest in ecosystem services valuation (ESV). ESV is a voluntary environmental initiative (VEI) that intends to strengthen ecosystem services management, assess ecological sustainability of human activities, and rate and dissociate environmental and economic conditions. We identified 70 companies of 17 sectors and 18 countries currently undertaking ESV work, and classified their work according to levels of development. Additionally, we conducted interviews to better understand the reasons for such proactive behaviour. Among other findings, we discovered that pioneer companies tend to establish institutional partnerships to access to knowledge about ESV.

Keywords: ecosystem services management; ESV; ecosystem services valuation; VEIs; voluntary environmental initiatives; environmental management tool.

DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2019.100372

International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable Development, 2019 Vol.13 No.3/4, pp.479 - 497

Accepted: 08 Oct 2017
Published online: 28 Jun 2019 *

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