System of Environmental Economic
Accounting (SEEA) Ecosystem Accounting(e-Learning course)
11 April – 10 June 2022

Guideline

1 OVERVIEW OF THE COURSE
It is well established that healthy ecosystems and biodiversity are fundamental tosupporting and sustaining our wellbeing, our communities and our economies. Protecting
and properly managing ecosystems is key to ensure the continuous provision of ecosystemservices such as pollination, carbon sequestration, flood protection, etc. Understanding thecontribution of nature to our well-being and the impacts of our activities on the state ofecosystems are key for sustainable development The System of Environmental Economic
Accounting - Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA EA) provides the agreed statistical framework
for collecting such information on ecosystems and their relationship to human activity. It
provides an integrated statistical framework for organizing biophysical information aboutecosystems, measuring ecosystem services, tracking changes in ecosystem extent andcondition, and linking this information to measures of economic and human activities. It
supports the compilation of indicators for several global policy frameworks including the2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the associated SDGs indicators as well as
the Post 2020 Global Biodiversity Agenda. This E-learning course introduces the SEEA EA,
the international statistical standards for measuring the ecosystems.
The course is being organized by the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) and the UN
Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific (UNSIAP), under the overall guidance of the UN
Committee of Experts on Environmental Economic Accounting (UNCEEA).

2 LANGUAGE
The course will be offered in English.

3 TARGET PARTICIPANTS
Target participants are staff of national statistical offices, line ministries, other agencies
working on issues related to the environment and those interested in learning more about
the SEEA Ecosystem Accounting.

4 LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of the course, participants will be expected to:(a) Have a general understanding of the accounts presented in the SEEA EA and theirrelevance in policy;(b) Understand how spatial units of ecosystem types can be delineated and are used inaccounting for compiling ecosystem extent accounts;(c) Understand the concepts and the general approach for the measurement ofecosystem condition and ecosystem services;(d) Describe how biophysical modelling can be applied for ecosystem accounting;(e) Describe the purpose and approaches to the valuation of ecosystem services andecosystem assets

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5 COURSE DESIGN AND CONTENT
Each module consists of slides with explanations. After all modules have been completed,participants will be required to complete a final test that will cover all modules. The course
is expected to take a maximum of 20 hours to complete. Participants are also expected toattend regularly scheduled webinars. The webinars will provide an overview of the course
topics and allow for participants to ask questions; more details will be provided at thebeginning of the course. Furthermore, participants are encouraged to actively participate in
the online forum of the course.

OutlineModuleCoverage

1. Key concepts in ecosystem
accountingIntroduction
The ecosystem accounting framework
Related accounts and presentations

2. Accounting for ecosystem
extent

Spatial units
Ecosystem extent accounts
Complementary presentations of ecosystem extent data

3. Accounting for ecosystem
conditionEcosystem condition
Ecosystem condition indicators
Applications of ecosystem condition accounts

4. Accounting for ecosystemservicesConcepts and principles in accounting for ecosystemservices
The reference list of selected ecosystem services
Accounting for ecosystem services in physical terms

5. Valuation of ecosystemservices and ecosystem assets

Introduction to valuation

6. Guidelines on biophysicalmodellingModelling for ecosystem accounts
Using the ARIES modelling platform

7. Compiling SDG indicators
using the SEEA EA

Deriving indicators using the SEEA EA
Example calculations for four indicators
Institutional considerations

8. Scenario analysis and theSEEAIntroduction to policy scenario analysis and forecasting

6 EVALUATION
Participants must receive a 70% or higher in the test at the end of this course.

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Participants will be given 60 minutes to complete the test. They may take the exam up tothree times and retain their best score. Participants may not work together on the test. Thecourse facilitator reserves the right to deny course certificates to participants suspected ofcheating on the test. The supervisor is expected to ensure that the test of the course is taken
in his/her presence.

7 SOURCE MATERIAL
This course draws upon various sources, including international statistical standards and case studies
from national statistical offices.

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