Workshop report: ecosystem services valuation on Curacao

On the 21th and 22st of January 2015, a 2-day workshop was held on Curacao. The workshop was intended to build knowledge and share experiences between different stakeholders involved in policy, management and/or investments in nature conservation or from the private sector with regard to the economic valuation of nature on Curaçao. The workshop focussed on raising awareness about the mutual interdependency of nature and the economy as a result of socio-economic valuation studies and these studies provide a tool to mainstream nature management within all social, environmental and economic sectors on Curaçao. During the workshop the research steps for a total economic valuation (TEV) study for Curaçao were developed based on various practical exercises. In a TEV study, all the important ecosystems and ecosystem services are investigated.

“Increase the understanding about why a study on the socio-economic value of nature is useful for Curaçao, how to develop such an assessment, and which tools to use” The sub-objectives of the workshop were:

• Training on defining objectives, approaches and scope of economic valuation of ecosystem services based on The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB)1 .
• Identify and discuss policy issues that should be addressed by a total ecosystem services valuation study.
• Training on the available ecosystem valuation methods and techniques.
• Present experience and knowledge on valuation of ecosystem goods and services studies, the actual influence on nature conservation, management, investments and policies in the Caribbean. Factors that enable the effectiveness of a valuation study will also be discussed.
• Discuss recommendations to implement and communicate the outcome of the potential study to the relevant decision-makers and actors in the private sector.

The idea is to have several theoretical sessions combined with interactive discussions and exercises. Working groups are assigned to develop cases based on identified policy questions to which economic valuation research on Curaçao can be applied. Finally, the participants identify approaches and a strategy to communicate expected results