The economic value of nature is a measure of the benefits people receive from nature. This value is defined as increases in individuals’ well-being, and generally quantified using “willingness to pay” – the maximum amount of resources an individual would be willing to give up in order to obtain the benefit in question. This value can generate a demand for ecosystem services providing an opportunity for service users to pay for providers for the services on which they depend. These types of payment for ecosystem services schemes are proliferating globally.
