ABSTRACT
The ecosystem approach and the intergovernmental science-policy platform on biodiversity and ecosystem services (IPBES) are among the highest profile international initiatives seeking to promote ecosystem services and the value of nature into mainstream policy and practice. The ecosystem approach was advanced by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to aid implementation of ecosystem services within context-specific geographical and socio-economic settings. Signatories of the CBD have committed to a range of obligations, including embedding an ecosystem approach into decision-making. Ecosystem services are a conceptual framework embedded in a range of other international and interregional initiatives, such as the Ramsar Convention and the economics of ecosystems and biodiversity (TEEB), seeking to promote a more sustainable relationship between humanity and supportive ecosystems. There is a pressing need for concerted international collaboration to safeguard ecosystems and services vital for the continued well-being of society.
