Biodiversity Economics

Human induced biodiversity loss is greater now than at any time in human history, with extinctions occurring at rates hundreds of times higher than background extinction levels. The field of biodiversity economics analyses the socio-economic causes of and solutions to biodiversity loss by combining the disciplines of economics, ecology and biology. This field has shown a remarkable degree of transformation over the past four decades and now incorporates the analysis of the entire diversity of biological resources within the living world. Biodiversity Economics presents a series of papers that show how bio-economic analysis can be applied to the examination and evaluation of the problem of various forms of biodiversity loss. Containing insightful bio-economic research by some of prominent practitioners in the field, this volume will be an essential research tool to those working on biodiversity issues in the academic, policy and private sectors.

Review of the hardback: 'For the curious, it is an exceptional introduction, covering both the intensive and extensive margin of biodiversity economics. For the cognoscenti, it is a store of original value contributed by outstanding scholars in the field.' Gardner Brown, Professor Emeritus, University of Washington, Review of the hardback: 'For many years the BioEcon program has provided a forum for cutting-edge economic analysis of the important and difficult challenge of biodiversity conservation. This book brings together many of the most important contributions to have emerged from that program, providing an excellent overview of the state-of-the-art in the field.' Stefano Pagiola, Senior Environmental Economist, The World Bank, Review of the hardback: 'Biodiversity loss is one of the great challenges of our time, alongside and closely linked to both climate change and global poverty. This volume offers penetrating analysis and practical approaches to assess the values, stem the loss and begin construction of a biodiversity-friendly economy.' Joshua Bishop, IUCN - The World Conservation Union