Following his studies in Environmental Sciences and several years of environmental research at Utrecht University, Lars Hein worked for the FAO in Rome as an environmental expert. In 2005, he obtained his PhD in Wageningen in environmental systems analysis and went on to become an assistant professor. After a short stint as an environmental manager with Shell, he returned to Wageningen as a personal professor of Ecosystem Services within the Environmental Systems Analysis Group in 2010. ‘For decades, the scientific community has been considering mapping ecosystem services. In 2010 different initiatives converged, and we began linking the ecosystem services to statistics and macro-economic production values. What motivates me in my job is the hope that this method will contribute to a more sustainable approach to managing our natural resources.’
Nature provides us with resources and food, regulates our climate and purifies air and water. Moreover, it provides us with a pleasant living and leisure environment. These properties are not included in the price of products. In collaboration with Statistics Netherlands (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek – CBS) Wageningen researchers…