Ecosystem Services Research

National Ecosystem Services Partnership

About the Partnership

At different times this developing partnership has been called the National Ecosystem Services Research Partnership (NESRP) and the National Ecosystem Services Partnership (NESP). Our objective is to create an inclusive multi-stakeholder partnership among key government agencies and a wide range of other public and private organizations to support the incorporation of ecosystem services into research and decision making at all levels.

Initial discussions suggest the Partnership could play a number of different roles including:

Develop credible ecosystem service standards, indicators, and measurement protocols that support environmental accounting systems and markets;
Advance ecosystem service research and valuation techniques;
Create institutional capacity for investments in natural capital that provide sustainable flows of ecosystem services;
Create efficiencies by improving communication, synthesizing activities, assessing gaps, and coordinating efforts; and
Promote education about ecosystem services.

History

In December 2008, EPA issued a call for partners to develop NESP and received expressions of interest from over 160 institutions and individuals. In October, 2009 the National Geographic Society and EPA hosted an initial kick-off meeting with a selection of interested institutions to begin framing the structure, mission, and goals of the partnership. To build on this momentum and growing interest, EPA is supporting a small staff for one year to engage interested U.S. institutions in designing and launching this partnership.

Volunteer working groups involving almost 60 individuals from the private sector, NGOs, academia, and other government agencies are currently developing suggestions for the Partnership's mission, name, structure and objectives, with the goal of launching the Partnership by December 2010.

We invite interested organizations, public and private, to participate in the development of this exciting venture with us.

Interactive Web Forum

Please visit our web forum for opportunities to actively participate in building the partnership. There, you will find many resources including our online survey on the partnership mission, objectives, and structure, draft documents for download, and discussion forums for each of the three working groups covering: (1) partnership function and structure, (2) research and assessment needs, and (3) internal and external communication.

Steering Group

Interim Steering Group

An interim steering group has been formed to help consider the input received from working groups, the results of our survey on partnership function, and comments on the web forum, to help provide informed decisions on the partnership mission, objectives, structure and governance.

Group members as of March 15, 2010:

Rick Linthurst, USEPA
Mark Nechodom, USDA
Kit Batten, Dept of Interior
Paul Sandifer, NOAA
Amanda DeSantis, Dupont
Jessica Fox, EPRI
Steve Swallow, University of Rhode Island
Dean Urban, Duke University
Jim Boyd, Resources for the Future
Frank Casey, Defenders of Wildlife
John Talberth, WRI
Jenee Kresge, National Association of Regional Councils

Events

Upcoming Conferences of Interest

April 28-30th. Soil and Water Conservation Society. “Managing Agricultural Landscapes for Environmental Quality II.” Denver, CO.

June 23-24th, 2010. American Forest Foundation, Ecosystem Markets Conference. Durham, NC. Early registration deadline is May 28th.

June 24th-25th. Wildlife Habitat Council, “Ecosystem Services Conference: A New Generation in Restoration: Strategies for Managing Corporate and Public Land.” Silver Spring, MD. Early registration deadline is May 7th.

July 18-20th, 2010. Soil and Water Conservation Society Annual Conference. “Ecosystem Services: Application for Conservation Science, Policy, and Practice.” St. Louis, MO. Early registration deadline is June 2nd.

August 1-6th, 2010. Ecological Society of America (ESA). “Global Warming: The legacy of our past, the challenge for our future.” Pittsburgh, PA. Early registration deadline is June 17th.

December 6-9th, 2010. A Conference on Ecosystem Services (ACES). Phoenix, AZ. Early registration deadline is September 15th.

If you know of additional Ecosystem Service events you think should be listed here, please email Llael to let us know.

Partners

EPA is partnering with the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University .

Contact NESP

Please contact us if you would like to learn more about the Partnership or have questions or input.

Acting Partnership Director
Lydia Olander, Ph.D.
Director of Ecosystem Services
Program
Nicholas Institute
Duke University
lydia.olander@duke.edu
919-613-8709

Federal Agency Coordinator
Kathryn Saterson, Ph.D.
Assistant Lab Director
National Health and
Environmental Effects Research Laboratory
EPA
saterson.kathryn@epa.gov

Research Associate
Llael Cox, MCRP
Office of Research and
Development
EPA
Visiting Associate at the Nicholas Institute
cox.llael@epa.gov

Join the email list

If you are interested in being added to the database of interested individuals and institutions, please send the following information by email to Llael Cox. We will use this information to periodically send you updates on the partnership and opportunities to participate.

Name and address of your organization
Name, address, telephone number, and email address of the organization’s contact person

Last updated March 17, 2010