WASHINGTON - October 25 - Are the Earth's natural systems worth more economically intact or plundered? That simple question is rarely answered before major decisions are made about how natural resources are used. In response, a science-based effort has emerged aimed at assessing the economic values of nature's services. These services, referred to as "ecosystem services," include such basic functions as clean water, flood control and climate regulation. Many of the scientists leading this effort will speak at a unique symposium in Washington, D.C., on the emerging science of valuing ecosystem services.

Featured speakers include Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, who will speak at 9.20 a.m., and Gretchen Daily, Stanford professor and author of "The New Economy of Nature: the Quest to Make Conservation Profitable," who will speak at 4 p.m.

The symposium kicks off two new programs: the Natural Capital Project, a joint effort led by Stanford University, the Nature Conservancy and World Wildlife Fund to develop and deploy innovative tools that capture the full value of ecosystem services for decision-making; and the Kathryn Fuller Science for Nature Fund, which focuses on supporting and harnessing conservation science to make scientific research more accessible to conservation practitioners.

Two new scientific papers that, for the first time, map the ecosystem services across broad regions in Paraguay and California, will be published in PLoS Biology concurrently with the symposium.

WHEN: Tuesday, Oct. 31 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

WHERE: Carnegie Institution: 1530 P St, NW, Washington, DC 20005

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