The integrated capitals
The Capitals Coalition, of which we are a member, says:
“A capitals approach enables organisations to understand how their success is directly or indirectly underpinned by natural capital, social capital and human capital, empowering them to make decisions that offer the greatest value across all capitals.”
When we look at the world – and the economy – through this lens, we recognise that each of the capitals has value. And, more often than not, that value is beyond financial. For example, value might lie in increased wellbeing, sustainable markets, healthy habitats or strong social connections.
What does this look like in practice?
Let’s look at some examples in agriculture and food systems to understand how this works in practice:
- Investing in education increases human capital. For example, we can educate communities about how to reduce their reliance on synthetic fertilizers and improve local soil and water quality.
- Supporting the creation of local farmer networks increases social capital, allowing people to share best practice farming methods for regenerative food production and ways to integrate native vegetation into their production system.
- Rehabilitating forests increases natural capital and improves the health of habitat for plant and animal life, ultimately supporting the pollinators that are essential to our food systems.
- Using technology to monitor irrigation and water use harnesses produced capital for broader gains, reducing pressure on biological resources.
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