The principals of IDEEA Group, Carl Obst and Mark Eigenraam, are international leaders in the design and development of the UN System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA). The SEEA is the accepted international standard for environmental-economic accounting. It provides a framework for explaining the relationship between the environment and the economy. The framework was developed so that it works with standard economic and financial accounts.
The Central Framework of the SEEA was developed in 2012. It is developed and managed by the United Nations, the European Commission, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group.
The SEEA principles are now recognised as the world’s most cost-effective, actionable approach to natural capital accounting. As of 2021, 90 countries have compiled SEEA accounts. Many more countries are planning to compile accounts using this standard.
Carl and Mark have played leading roles in the development and authorship of the following:
- SEEA: Central Framework (2012)
- SEEA: Experimental Ecosystem Accounting (2013)
- SEEA: Applications and Extensions (2014)
- SEEA: Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (2017)
Our work in this area continues: Carl is currently the lead editor for the revision of the SEEA that is underway.
Find out more about the SEEA and how we use it in our work here.