Humans benefit from a plethora of processes and resources that are supplied by natural ecosystems. Collectively, these are known as ecosystem services and include products like clean drinking water and processes such as the decomposition of wastes.These services were popularised and their definitions formalised by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. This grouped ecosystem services into four broad categories: provisioning, such as the production of food and water; regulating, such as the control of climate and disease; supporting, such as nutrient cycles and crop pollination; and cultural, such as spiritual and recreational benefits.The impacts of the use and abuse of these ecosystem services are becoming evermore apparent – air and water quality are increasingly compromised, oceans are being over-fished, pests and diseases are extending beyond their historical boundaries, and deforestation is eliminating flood control around human settlements. Consequently, society is coming to realise that ecosystem services are not only threatened and limited, but that the pressure to compromise between immediate and long-term human needs is urgent.To help inform decision-makers, economic value is increasingly associated with many ecosystem services. The on-going challenge of prescribing economic value to nature is prompting shifts in how we recognise and manage the environment.Speakers will present the application of ecosystem services evaluation into mainstream ecological practice. Examples of recent case studies from the terrestrial, marine and freshwater environments will be covered. Keynote speaker: Defra Chief Scientist, Professor Bob Watson.