Ecosystem services shine at film festival

The multitude of vital benefits that nature provides to society are called ‘ecosystem services’. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) applauds the Czech movie The values of nature that helps us understand the value of these ecosystem services, and has just awarded it the Osiris Prize at the thirty-ninth international Agrofilm festival in Slovakia (2 – 7 October 2023).

The movie, by Michal Gálik, presents the attempt of Czech scientists to measure – quantitatively and qualitatively – the value of ecosystem services. They undertake this challenge to demonstrate their often overlooked and undervalued significance and, consequently, to urge for a more sustainable use. Their research includes not only forests, nature reserves, and agricultural land, but also urban and peri-urban ecosystems.

Ecosystem services are essential to human life. The term includes natural systems that provide benefits such as nutritious food and clean water, regulate diseases and climate, support the pollination of crops and soil formation, and provide recreational opportunities. Despite an estimated value of USD 125 trillion, these assets are not adequately accounted for in political and economic policies, which means there is insufficient investment in their protection and management.

As the film underpins, changes in ecosystems have a direct impact on the quality of our lives. We are becoming increasingly aware that we are dependent on nature. Restoring degraded natural and agricultural landscapes and improving biodiversity would be mutually beneficial to us and to nature.

The movie The values of nature presents real-life examples from the Czech Republic where humans and nature can co-exist. The film shows sustainable forest management practices, which by ensuring a healthy forest, enhance the number and value of ecosystem services, as well as nature-friendly crop production that helps increase soil quality and water retention capacity.

As is explained, ecosystem services are measured in different ways. One is the bio-physical evaluation that takes stock of the landscape and the ecosystem processes that take place in it. Another is the socio-cultural method summarizing how and why the landscape is important for individual people. Lastly, the economic method quantifies the values of nature in money. All these assessments help make decisions on the future use of the landscape – what we would lose or win by various development scenarios.

The film takes a clear stand on the need to integrate ecosystem services into policymaking processes and into our everyday decisions to help build a more sustainable relationship between nature and humans.

Agrofilm is an international festival of films and video-programmes aimed especially at themes from agriculture and rural development. The objective of the festival is to inform the public about the latest findings in the sphere of agriculture, food-production, nutrition status of various populations, problems in rural areas and their inhabitants, conservation of natural resources and improvement of life quality.

The views and opinions expressed in this programme are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of FAO.