capital valuation converts data on stocks of natural capital and flows of benefits into metrics of value that can help organizations make better decisions. These metrics include both biophysical accounts (physical characteristics and flows of natural resources, such as land, water and forests, within a specific geographical area) and monetary accounts (such as profit and loss analogues) that enable organizations to compare the value of nature with financial data. Together, such accounting and valuation provide a clearer picture of nature’s benefits and its present and future value for organizations, ecosystems and regions. They enable leaders and decision-makers to access critical data on the health of natural assets and their contributions to socioeconomic well-being. Governments can use the natural capital approach to integrate data on the enhancement or depletion of natural assets into national economic accounts. This enables them to make more balanced decisions on sustainable development. Similarly, businesses can use this approach to integrate natural capital with traditional financial and management accounting systems. This enables them to better manage risks associated with resource depletion, develop their nature strategies, comply with environmental regulations and foster resilience. Natural capital approaches, while not new, are not mainstreamed today. Business and government decisions are still grounded in maximizing performance on indicators of produced capital. The natural capital approach remains a novel tool in the decision-making process. Its usage is not rewarded by markets or regulators, so there is consequently no guarantee that the data generated will meaningfully alter an organization’s decision-making. However, there are many notable international efforts that aim to accelerate the adoption of natural capital accounting and valuation. Although these initiatives are driving strong progress, the widespread adoption of natural capital approaches remains limited. Natural capital initiatives are more developed in the public sector, building on international efforts. For example, the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) is the UN’s standard for natural capital accounting for the public sector.17 It was first introduced in the 1990s and subsequently adopted as the UN statistical standard in 2012. The Ecosystem Accounting framework (SEEA- EA) provides governments with a clear standard to integrate nature into decision-making, while also guiding how this data should feed into business decisions. As of 2024, 94 countries had implemented SEEA and maintain at least one natural capital account.18 However, there is limited evidence to show that such accounts are either acted upon or devolved to local governments or business contexts. The World Bank has, for more than a decade, promoted a “comprehensive wealth” approach that is well-aligned with SEEA. Its focus has been to improve the global dialogue on improving traditional systems of national accounts (SNA) and moving “beyond GDP” by measuring countries’ stocks of productive assets for sustainable development in ways that distinguish them from traditional flows of income, goods and services. The Bank’s Wealth Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services (WAVES) partnership pioneered natural capital accounting approaches in the development planning and national economic accounts of 10 countries;19 this approach has since reached 40 countries through the work of the Bank’s Global Program on Sustainability (GPS).20 The Bank has also created the Changing Wealth of Nations database that provides wealth accounts for over 150 countries that encompass different forms of human and natural capital.21 Regional development banks have been similarly active: for example, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) recently launched an action plan to accelerate the use of natural capital approaches in development projects.22 Many indicators, pilots and tools have been developed for the public sector in recent years. China piloted its Gross Ecosystem Product (GEP) metric as a macroeconomic analogue to GDP (see Box 1).23 The SEEA framework recommends GEP as an indicator to support decision-making. GEP pilots are being commissioned in various countries including Colombia, India, Sri Lanka and Sweden. The Accounting for ecosystems and their services in the European Union (INCA) project introduces ecosystem accounting in a standardized and comparable manner for the EU’s 27 member states;24 and it has informed the development a new pilot module for GEP .25 The Stanford Natural Capital Project’s InVEST suite of software also provides policy-makers with decision-support tools, which can equally be used by private sector organizations.261.3 The public sector is beginning to embrace natural capital approaches China piloted its Gross Ecosystem Product (GEP) metric as a macroeconomic analogue to GDP . GEP pilots are now being commissioned in Colombia, India, Sri Lanka and Sweden. 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Mainstreaming Natural Capital 2025