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Values and viewpoints

While economists estimate the global gross national product as around $18 trillion a year, ecosystem services provided by the world's ecosystems are estimated at $33 trillion per year. Yet ecosystem services are given little consideration in current economic decision making - losing wetlands and the ecosystem services they provide to society may lead us to realise just how much money they have been saving us.

Values assigned to wetlands generally reflect the perspective of the valuer.
Consider:

• If a livestock grazier were assessing the value of ecosystem services provided by wetlands, what might they consider most important and least important?
• If a tourism operator were assessing the value of wetlands, what might they consider most important and least important?
• If a wetland scientist were assessing the value of ecosystem services provided by wetlands, how different might that be from a grazier's or tourism operator's assessment?
• Who in your community might dispute the values you would assign to your local wetlands? Would anyone in your community argue that wetlands have social and cultural values?