Ecological Glossary: ​​Ecosystem Services

Ecological Glossary is a graphic resource that invites us to rethink the words we use to name our relationships with biodiversity and territories. We begin this section with the concept of “ecosystem services.”

This term began to be used systematically in the 1990s and became established during the 2000s—although it emerged in previous decades. Over time, this approach was criticized for its utilitarian emphasis, reducing nature to a set of goods and services useful to human beings. In response, the concept of “Nature’s Contributions to People” was proposed, which sought to integrate Indigenous and local knowledge and recognize other values: relational, cultural, and spiritual.

However, both approaches maintain an anthropocentric logic. Furthermore, the chosen terms—services and contributions—continue to resonate with the language of the market.

We invite you not only to learn about these concepts but also to question them. Because transforming language is also about imagining other ways of inhabiting the world.

Sources:

Daily, G., Postel, S., Bawa, K., & Kaufman, L. (1997). Nature’s Services: Societal Dependence On Natural Ecosystems. Bibliovault OAI Repository, the University of Chicago Press.
Díaz, S., et al. (2018). Assessing nature’s contributions to people. Science 359(6373): 270-272.
Peterson, G.D., et al. 2018. Welcoming different perspectives in IPBES: “Nature’s contributions to people” and “Ecosystem services”. Ecology and Society 23(1):39.