How to Recognize Nature’s Value in Natural Asset Management

Natural assets such as forests, lakes and ponds, wetlands, watercourses, and soils provide services that underpin our economies, societies, and life itself; yet historically our actions suggest otherwise.  Ten years ago, the concept of ‘natural asset management’ didn’t exist. Traditional asset management focused on engineered assets — nature’s benefits were often limited to narrow aesthetic or “green” values, and local governments lacked approaches to measure and manage this extremely valuable asset. As communities from across Canada experience the impacts of climate related weather events, natural asset management is an increasingly important way to help us protect and manage the ecosystems that deliver the key services on which all of us rely.

The Natural Assets Initiative (NAI) is an award-winning, Canadian non-profit that is changing the way local governments, watershed stewards, and many others deliver everyday services by improving the quality and resiliency of infrastructure at lower costs and reduced risks.

NAI’s team provides scientific, economic, and civic expertise to guide communities across Canada in identifying, valuing, and accounting for natural assets in their financial planning and asset management programs, and in developing leading-edge, sustainable, and climate-resilient natural infrastructure solutions.

The NAI began as a single initiative in 2016 and now works with over 100 local governments, professional associations, and provincial and federal jurisdictions to lead the creation and development of a widely accepted approach to natural asset management in Canada.

The NAI’s article The Price of Nature provides an excellent explanation of how to recognize the value of Nature in Natural Asset Management. You can also find many other resources, such as their Guidebook on how to include Natural Assets in Asset Management Plans, on their website.

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