Traditional net fishing from a boat
80% of the earth’s biomass is concentrated in the oceans. But how do we put a value on the deep sea" As the concept of natural capital ? putting a price tag on the services nature provides ? enters the mainstream, ocean expert and activist Karen Sack tells LUX why valuing nature needs to encompass more than just the dollar sign
Sack has over three decades’ experience in ocean conservation, law and policy, and currently serves as Chief Executive of Ocean Unite (co-founded with Richard Branson and José María Figueres) and Executive Director of the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA). Here, she explains why the time has come to incorporate ocean measurements into sustainability metrics, and how nature-based solutions should be at the forefront of any ocean investment strategy Follow LUX on Instagram: luxthemagazine
LUX: The concept of natural capital ? of nature having value in and of itself ? has historically been ignored. Why is it important"

Karen Sack: I do think it’s important, but we need to be careful not to reduce nature’s value to just a monetary value. The reason we have to put a value on nature is so that we can understand and incorporate it into the economic system that we all exist within. While, for me, this in some ways runs contrary to what we want to do – we want to just value nature in and of itself ? we still need to incorporate nature into our valuation system...