Natural Capital
Natural capital is the wealth provided by nature on which life depends (land, air, water, minerals). It increases when nature is stewarded in a way that improves the health and well-being of living things in an ecosystem and degrades when the ecosystem is harmed. In organisations, natural capital is depleted when non-renewable sources of energy, materials and goods are used. Natural capital is also depleted if goods are not recycled effectively after use. Some enterprises (such as those based on eco-entrepreneurship, eco-tourism or social agriculture) actively seek to steward and improve the physical environment (e.g. land use, air and water quality). Think about the way your enterprise/project uses land, air, water and minerals, and evaluate whether they are sourced, managed and developed in ways that sustain them. Natural capital is the stock of natural resources (land, air, water and minerals).
Return to Capital
