Incentives for Ecosystem Services (IES) Projekt
The aim of this FAO project is to examine payments and other forms of incentives for ecosystem services from agriculture.
Its objective is to create a solid basis for decision-making for the private and public sectors, thereby contributing to sustainable development and food security.
There is a wide variety of ecosystem services connected with agriculture:
- habitats for a rich biodiversity,
- landscape conservation,
- protection of the catchment area of ground water systems,
- carbon sequestration etc.
However, the market is often not in a position to pay farmers adequately for these services. The biggest challenge lies in introducing a fair and sustainable payment system. Against this background, the FAO has undertaken a detailed analysis of the technologies which protect and improve the ecosystem services provided by agricultural production.