A short history of the ecosystem services concept

Abstract

Mapping ecosystem services delivers essential insights into the spatial characteristics of various goods’ and services’ flows from nature to human society. It has become a central topic of science, policy, business and society – all belonging on functioning ecosystems.

This textbook summarises the current state-of-the-art of ecosystem services mapping, related theory and methods, different ecosystem service quantification and modelling approaches as well as practical applications. The book is produced by various international experts in the field, in a professional but understandable format to be used by stakeholders, students, teachers, practitioners and scientists involved or interested in ecosystem services mapping.

Benjamin Burkhard is a professor for physical geography at Leibniz Universität Hannover, Germany. He is doing research and teaching in geography and landscape ecology and has been involved in ecosystem services mapping since many years.

Joachim Maes is a researcher at the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Italy. He is engaged in the scientific support of EU biodiversity policy and develops maps of ecosystem services at European scale.