Green Growth That Works
A Natural Capital Project partnership-wide effort to offer proven techniques for planning and achieving nature-based solutions.
"This book offers success stories from around the world and is designed to equip leaders to implement a green growth approach in their own community or region. It distills key lessons from the rapid advances in science, technology, policy and finance over the past two decades" - Lisa Mandle, lead editor
Listen to Lisa Mandle talk Green Growth That Works on the Resources Radio podcast
Rapid economic development has been a boon to human well-being. It has lifted millions out of poverty, raised standards of living, and increased life expectancies. But economic development comes at a significant cost to natural capital—the fertile soils, forests, coastal marshes, farmland—that support all life on earth, including our own. The dilemma of our times is to figure out how to improve the human condition without destroying nature’s. If ecosystems collapse, so eventually will human civilization. One answer is inclusive green growth—the efficient use of natural resources. Inclusive green growth minimizes pollution and strengthens communities against natural disasters while reducing poverty through improved access to health, education, and services. Its genius lies in working with nature rather than against it.
Green Growth That Works is the first practical guide to bring together pragmatic finance and policy tools that can make investment in natural capital both attractive and commonplace. The authors present six mechanisms that demonstrate a range of approaches used around the globe to conserve and restore earth’s myriad ecosystems, including:
- Government subsidies
- Regulatory-driven mitigation
- Voluntary conservation
- Water funds
- Market-based transactions
- Bilateral and multilateral payments
Through a series of real-world case studies, the book addresses questions such as: How can we channel economic incentives to make conservation and restoration desirable? What approaches have worked best? How can governments, businesses, NGOs, and individuals work together successfully?Pioneered by leading scholars from the Natural Capital Project, this valuable compendium of proven techniques can guide agencies and organizations eager to make green growth work anywhere in the world.
Praise for Green Growth That Works
"This book helps to shift the narrative on biodiversity conservation from a purely environmental focus to a perspective that links conservation, inclusive green growth, and sustainable development. It shows the importance of setting targets that are clear, simple, and relevant to stakeholders from government, finance, and local communities." -Luis Alberto Moreno, President, Inter-American Development Bank
"Green Growth That Works portrays visionary projects from around the world that demonstrate powerful outcomes of communities, governments, and financial institutions working with nature to develop infrastructure thoughtfully through pioneering plans, policies, and investments." -Jane Lubchenco, Distinguished University Professor, Oregon State University; former Administrator, NOAA
"This book's practical exploration of 'inclusive green growth' refutes the notion that a rising GDP is environmentally harmless. Communities and people everywhere are hungry for solutions that fuse economic, social, and environmental goals, and this book superbly fills that need." -James Gustave Speth, former Administrator, UN Development Programme
