Policy Brief: Nordic ecosystem services:
Policy Brief: Nordic ecosystem services:

Author: Kristin Magnussen

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2019-01-10

Total Pages: 60

ISBN-13: 9289359447

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Nature provides us with a multitude of goods like food and fiber, drinking water, protection against floods and storms, carbon storage and recreational services like swimming and bird watching. Our welfare and well-being depend on these goods and services – often called ecosystem services, defined as “the benefit people directly and indirectly obtain from nature”. We often distinguish between four categories of ecosystem services; supporting, provisioning, regulating and cultural ecosystem services. This report aims to sum up and show some examples of the results of the ecosystem services projects carried out for NCM. It illustrates which ecosystem services we receive from Nordic nature and the importance of these. It also shows examples of how the ecosystem services approach has been and can be used in management of nature in the Nordic countries, and to point out some knowledge gaps.

Policy Brief: Nordic Cities – Green, Resilient, Healthy: Fostering national policies and initiatives for urban green space
Policy Brief: Nordic Cities – Green, Resilient, Healthy: Fostering national policies and initiatives for urban green space

Author: Nordic Council of Ministers Secretariat

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2022-09-12

Total Pages: 20

ISBN-13: 9289373954

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Available online: https://pub.norden.org/nord2022-018/ This policy brief is issued by the Nordic Working Group for Sustainable Cities, under the umbrella of the Nordic Council of Ministers. The overall objective and purpose of the efforts of this working group, which ended its work at the end of 2021 and was subsequently integrated into the Nordic Working Group on Biodiversity, was to contribute to achieving the sustainable development goals of Agenda 2030 with an emphasis on strengthening the exchange of experiences and co-operating on Nordic solutions for sustainable urban development. The importance of urban green spaces in achieving this has been a key focus of the group’s work. The text was prepared by Cecil C. Konijnendijk under assignment from the Working Group.

Policy brief: Arctic Freshwater Capital in the Nordic Countries:
Policy brief: Arctic Freshwater Capital in the Nordic Countries:

Author: Soile Oinonen

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2019-01-30

Total Pages: 18

ISBN-13: 928935996X

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Current indicators of economic growth (e.g., GDP) do not adequately consider sustainability, while environmental indicators alone fail to acknowledge the economic needs of a society. Natural Capital Accounting (NCA) can be the tool that fills the gap separating current economic and environmental indicators but development and adoption remains uneven across the Nordic region. This policy brief provides background on NCA and its associated accounting frameworks, demonstrates the applicability of NCA for sustainably utilizing freshwater resources in the Nordic Arctic and provides recommendations for maximizing the value of environmental accounting as an economic, environmental, and sustainable development tool.

Ecosystem accounting in the Nordic countries
Ecosystem accounting in the Nordic countries

Author: Mattsson, Eskil

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2022-10-28

Total Pages: 13

ISBN-13: 928937439X

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Available online: https://pub.norden.org/temanord2022-556/ This summary provides a short overview of the recent work on ecosystem accounting in each of the five Nordic countries including the Faroe Islands, illustrating advantages and disadvantages within the different countries regarding the use of existing ecosystem accounts, thus to which extent these accounts coincide with new international standards on ecosystem accounting. Recommendations are presented for the Nordic countries on how to advance the development of ecosystem accounting.

Ecosystem Restoration for Mitigation of Natural Disasters
Ecosystem Restoration for Mitigation of Natural Disasters

Author: Guðmundur Halldórsson

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2017-06-29

Total Pages: 20

ISBN-13: 9289350741

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Every year, natural disasters cause loss of lives and significant damage in the Nordic countries. Ecosystems in good condition have the ability to reduce the impacts of natural disasters. However, degradation of natural habitats has in many cases seriously damaged this ability. A recently concluded Nordic project ERMOND—Ecosystem Resilience for Mitigation of Natural Disasters—aimed to facilitate new thinking and new solutions in disaster risk management in the Nordic countries. The main conclusion from the ERMOND project is that Nordic disaster risk reduction strategies should place restoration of degraded ecosystems on the agenda as an integrated part of future disaster risk reduction management. This may in the long run proof to be cheaper and more sustainable than traditional engineered solutions, such as building levees for preventing floods. Restoration of degraded ecosystem will furthermore provide a wide array of other environmental, economic and social benefits. The ERMOND project was launched in 2014 as a theme project of the Nordic Council of Ministers, appointed by the Icelandic Ministry for the Environment and Natural Resources. In total, fifteen institutions participated in the ERMOND project, and another four were part of a wider network receiving information on project activities. Project partners came from all the Nordic countries. The project was financed through the following funding schemes of the Nordic Council of Ministers: NordBio - The Program for the Icelandic Presidency in NCM in 2014 and the Terrestrial Ecosystem Group (TEG). The Committee of Senior Officials for the Environment funded the project NordEcRes, which was linked to the ERMOND project. The results of the ERMOND project will soon be published in a TemaNord report, an ANP Policy brief and several scientific articles.

Biodiversity and ecosystem services in Nordic coastal ecosystems
Biodiversity and ecosystem services in Nordic coastal ecosystems

Author: A. Belgrano

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2018-06-18

Total Pages: 203

ISBN-13: 9289356650

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This report describes the status and trends of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the Nordic region, the drivers and pressures affecting them, interactions and effects on people and society, and options for governance. The main report consists of two volumes. Volume 1 The general overview (this report) and Volume 2 The geographical case studies. This study has been inspired by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystems Services (IPBES). It departs from case studies (Volume 2, the geographical case studies) from ten geographical areas in the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden) and the autonomous areas of Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland. The aim was to describe status and trends of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the Nordic region, including the drivers and pressures affecting these ecosystems, the effects on people and society and options for governance. The Nordic study is structured as closely as possible to the framework for the regional assessments currently being finalized within IPBES. The report highlights environmental differences and similarities in the Nordic coastal areas, like the inhabitants´ relation to nature and the environment as well as similarities in social and policy instruments between the Nordic countries. This study provides background material for decision-making and it is shown that Nordic cooperation is of great importance for sustainable coastal management and should be strengthened in future work.

Nordic Ecosystem Services
Nordic Ecosystem Services

Author: Kristin Magnussen

Publisher:

Published: 2019

Total Pages: 59

ISBN-13: 9789289359467

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-- Preface -- Nordic Ecosystem Services -- Brief Summary -- Application of the ecosystem services approach in ecosystem management -- Introduction and Background -- Literature -- Ecosystems and ecosystem services in NCM reports.

Towards enhanced climate change adaptation in the Nordic Region
Towards enhanced climate change adaptation in the Nordic Region

Author: Gram-Hanssen, Irmelin

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2023-08-20

Total Pages: 21

ISBN-13: 9289376376

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Available online: https://pub.norden.org/nord2023-014/ This policy brief presents the findings from the report "Comparison and analysis of national adaptation policies in the Nordic region", along with a set of policy recommendations directed at public authorities in the Nordic countries. After summarizing key progress factors and best practices and main challenges, the policy brief presents five main recommendations: 1) reframe adaptation as transformation; 2) establish mechanisms for systematic knowledge generation and develop appropriate indicators; 3) break down silo-structure between sectors and develop a clearly articulated policy cycle; 4) enhance adaptation financing and economic incentive mechanisms and translate knowledge on risks and vulnerabilities to local adaptation measures; 5) enhance the political mandate for adaptation and strengthen international commitments, including through Nordic collaboration.

Policy brief:
Policy brief:

Author: Lea Skræp Svenningsen

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2018-11-21

Total Pages: 45

ISBN-13: 9289358815

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The objective of this policy brief is to present a high-level overview of the use of economic instruments in environmental policies in the Nordic countries from the 1990's up to 2017. This overview is based on previously published reports on the use of economic instruments in Nordic environmental policy. Focus is on the development in use of economic instruments in each of the five Nordic countries, and the region as a whole. More specifically, the policy brief presents: • An overview of number of economic instruments by country and by sector • The revenue from the use of economic instruments by country and by sector • Discussion of the use of economic instruments in relation to the transition to a green economy.