Paper short abstract:

I take a critical view of the concept of values as currently applied to biodiversity and ecosystem services. I propose and illustrate a novel approach based on the framework developed and piloted in an ESPA project.

Paper long abstract:

'Values' are best understood as a cultural cognitive domain: the domain and its meaning vary according to culture and context. 'Values' relating to nature are not discrete but embedded in mental maps of nature. Values are also embedded in entitlements, which extend to other species or spirits. These entail 'rules' about acceptable or taboo trade-offs (e.g. is it acceptable to allocate water through the market, should everyone share water equally or some should receive a greater share). Some cultures express values that are implicated in the over-exploitation of biodiversity and disregard of ecosystem services and others express values that promote them. However, among most scientists and policy makers, the concept of 'value' in relation to nature is disassociated from culture and context with utilitarian or consequentialist justification. The causes of behavior that undermines biodiversity and ecosystem services or that sustains them eludes those who are attributed with the authority to decide - who disseminate their own values about the nature of the threats and losses and who allocate costs and benefits. The values that are carried as 'baggage', whether implicit or disguised as 'necessity', hamper our ability to make sense of and change our world. The paper takes a critical view of the concept of values as currently applied in relation to biodiversity and ecosystem services. It proposes and illustrates a new approach based on the conceptual framework developed and pilot-tested in an ESPA-funded project as well as the appropriate contexts for the use of such an approach.