The Natural Capital Indicator Framework (NCIF): A framework of indicators for national natural capital reporting

TL;DR

The paper introduces the Natural Capital Indicator Framework (NCIF), a structured approach for countries to select and organize indicators for natural capital reporting, enhancing comparability and decision-making.

Contribution

It presents an integrated framework and example indicators to improve natural capital assessment and reporting at the national level.

Findings

Provides a coherent indicator structure for natural capital reporting

Facilitates better decision-making on economic development

Enhances comparability across countries

Abstract

It is now widely recognised that components of the environment play the role of economic assets, termed natural capital, that are a foundation of social and economic development. National governments monitor the state and trends of natural capital through a range of activities including natural capital accounting, national ecosystem assessments, ecosystem service valuation, and economic and environmental analyses. Indicators play an integral role in these activities as they facilitate the reporting of complex natural capital information. One factor that hinders the success of these activities and their comparability across countries is the absence of a coherent framework of indicators concerning natural capital (and its benefits) that can aid decision-making. Here we present an integrated Natural Capital Indicator Framework (NCIF) alongside example indicators, which provides an illustrative structure for countries to select and organise indicators to assess their use of and dependence on natural capital. The NCIF sits within a wider context of indicators related to natural, human, social and manufactured capital, and associated flows of benefits. The framework provides decision-makers with a structured approach to selecting natural capital indicators with which to make decisions about economic development that take into account national natural capital and associated flows of benefits.