The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
- The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) was a major assessment of the human impact on the global environment
- It was called for by the United Nations in 2000, launched in 2001, and was published in 2005
Aims
- The MA gave a scientific appraisal of the condition and trends in the world’s ecosystems and the services they provide
- It used a variety of environmental indicators to assess these ecosystems, including factors such as biodiversity, pollution, population or climate, as these can be used quantitatively as indicators of sustainability
- These factors can be used to assess sustainability on a range of scales, from local to global
- In the case of the MA, this was done on a global scale
- One of the main aims of the MA was to assess how changes to ecosystems have affected, are affecting and will affect human health and wellbeing
- Another main aim of the MA was to assess the scientific basis for action to conserve and use ecosystems sustainably
- In summary, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment reports evaluated:
- The current condition of the planet’s ecosystems and the services they provide
- The importance of these ecosystems to human wellbeing
- How we can restore, conserve and enhance the sustainable use of these ecosystems
Findings
- The main findings of the MA included:
- In the last 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems at a faster rate than at any other time in history, which has led to substantial and largely irreversible losses of global biodiversity
- These changes have led to substantial overall gains in wellbeing and economic development for many human societies, but at the cost of degrading many ecosystems and the services they provide
- These changes have substantially increased the poverty experienced by some human societies
- If not addressed, ecosystem degradation and the problems it causes will substantially reduce the benefits that future generations will be able to obtain from ecosystems
- It is possible to restore ecosystems but this requires substantial changes in policies and practices
Worked example
Give an example of how environmental indicators (such as those used in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment) can be used to evaluate the progress of a project to increase sustainability on a more local scale.
Answer
A city council launches a project to reduce pollution levels and increase the sustainability of its transportation system by expanding public transportation and creating bike lanes. Before starting the project, environmental indicators (such as air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, the number of people using public transport, and the number of cyclists) can be used to assess the current state of the system. This provides a baseline against which progress can be measured. These same environmental indicators can then be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the project over time. By monitoring these indicators, the government can identify areas for improvement and communicate progress to stakeholders (such as the public, policymakers, and investors).
