11 November 2014: The CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) has launched the Ecosystem Services and Resilience (ESR) Framework for using ecosystem service and resilience concepts to improve human well-being and food and livelihood security in agricultural landscapes.

The framework, which was developed by Bioversity International scientists and others, aims to help people and agricultural systems benefit from ecosystem services, as well as provide and enhance these services through better management.

The ESR Framework document explains that ecosystem services: are about “the combined actions of the species and physical process in an ecosystem that perform functions of value to society;” contribute to human well-being; and are critical to agricultural production. It states that agricultural systems are both users and providers of ecosystem services, supplying, for example, food, fiber and biofuel, and depending on regulating services, such as soil formation, water supply and quality, and erosion control.

Five principles form the framework’s foundation, including: meeting the needs of poor people; using, modifying and caring for nature; managing cross-scale and cross-level interactions of ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes to positively impact development outcomes; using governance mechanisms for achieving equitable access to, and provision of, ecosystem services; and enhancing the capacity of communities to sustainably develop in order to build resilience.

The document outlines the framework’s tools, methods and approaches, including assessment, planning, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation, as well as potential pitfalls and keys to success. It also describes a number of case studies, including: agricultural growth corridors in East Africa; dealing with pressures on ecosystem services in the Volta River Basin; rewarding for water-related ecosystem services in the Cañete River Basin in Peru; and rice production in the Greater Mekong sub-region. It discusses research required to close knowledge gaps and includes an annex on the typology of ecosystem services used by WLE.

The ESR Framework is expected to directly benefit people by: delivering a sustainable supply and equitable distribution of ecosystem services; reducing the risk and severity of impacts from system shocks; and creating new and alternative opportunities for income generation, including from increased and diversified food productivity, and payments for ecosystem service schemes. [Publication: Ecosystem Services and Resilience Framework] [WLE Blog] [CGIAR Research Program on WLE Website]