The Value of Valuing Nature

[ Adams. The Value of Valuing Nature. 2014. Science 346 (6209): 549-551. ] Adams finds several challenges associated with the valuation of nature via ecosystem services: the unclear link between ecosystem processes and ecosystem services, unclear valuation of ecosystem services, and unclear links between ecosystem services and human well-being. She concludes that, due to these challenges, ecosystem services assessments will not always end in conservationist outcomes, and instead conservation should be viewed as an ultimately political decision.