Monetizing Pollinator Biodiversity: An Evaluation Framework for the Conservation of an Ecosystem Service

Abstract

As climate change and human activity around the world increasingly threatens the current levels of global biodiversity, we should take measures to understand the implications of biodiversity loss on ecosystem function before serious unintended consequences arise from our neglect. Of special concern are those ecosystem functions which humans find helpful, also known as ecosystem services. The focus of this paper is to address the connection between biodiversity and ecosystem services using the particular example of pollination. By reviewing the existing literature on biodiversity, ecosystem services and pollination, I build a potential framework for evaluating the biodiversity aspect of pollination services. In understanding the economic value that biodiversity adds to ecosystem services in general, it is my hope to encourage conservation efforts to prioritize areas of biodiversity that maintain high levels of ecosystem function, that will not only increase the resilience of the system, but also maximize the monetary benefit of ecosystem services. Future research related to this topic should focus on evaluating the particular aspects biodiversity within ecosystems that provide ecosystem services.