Modeling Marine Ecosystem Services

Marine ecosystems support human wellbeing, through blue economy, food security, mental health, and supporting identities. The lens of ecosystem services can shed light on nature’s contributions to people׳s wellbeing. We discuss the importance of assessing ecosystem services to inform more inclusive decisions in coastal and marine systems. We explore methods for mapping, modeling, and valuing marine ecosystem services and outline new approaches to incorporate land-sea interactions. We also highlight key challenges and emerging technologies to advance our capabilities to model marine ecosystem services. Last, we introduce four case-studies that demonstrate applications of these concepts. Ultimately, modeling marine services can help society preserve the flows of benefits from oceans and coasts and incorporate multiple values into planning decisions to build a more equitable and sustainable future.