South West Partnership for Environment and Economic Prosperity (SWEEP)

SWEEP汇集了学者，企业和政策制定者的独特组合，将“自然资本”-为人们创造价值的自然要素-置于西南地区（SW）区域决策和业务流程的核心。SWEEP专注于西南部和康沃尔郡的心脏和锡利地方企业伙伴关系（LEP）地区的岛屿，将从根本上改变NERC科学推动可持续经济增长的程度，改善政策，决策和恢复能力，提供物有所值的服务，并改善健康和福祉。英国政府已将自然资本的可持续利用置于其25年环境计划的中心（25YEP）。拥有800公里壮观的海岸线和超过四分之一的土地在国家公园/杰出的自然美景地区，西南部拥有丰富的自然资本。它特别依赖这些自然资产和生态系统服务来推动经济增长，吸引更多的国内游客，并在直接自然资本使用（如农业，渔业）方面拥有比英国任何其他地区更高的就业率。然而，自然资本主导的经济增长也有更大的潜力;生产力低下，总增加值比全国平均水平低20%，平均收入全国最低。对自然资本的严重依赖也带来了经济脆弱性和挑战，因为越来越多的风暴、洪水、退化和污染破坏了自然资本，限制了经济增长。SWEEP及其商业和政策合作伙伴共同设计了一项工作计划，利用NERC资助的研究开发一种综合的、跨部门的、“全系统”的方法来实现自然资本主导的增长。本区域的自然资产有着千丝万缕的联系，因此，传统的决策一次只关注一个部门，可能会对其他部门造成意想不到的负面后果。例如，农业补贴可能导致。河流沿岸土地的污染物降低了下游水质，影响了水产养殖、渔业、旅游业和健康。SWEEP将解决这些问题，通过五个相互交织的“影响主题”实现集成的整个系统决策的好处，旨在：1）共同构建工具，帮助企业和政府了解决策的经济和环境后果;和2）共-开发新的商业机会和自然资本市场，为私营和公共部门组织提供改善自然环境的手段和激励。我们与合作伙伴一起开发了一套初步的“影响案例”，每个案例都涉及一个或多个影响主题，这些案例将从一开始就开始，以快速产生影响。这些活动包括开发自然灾害预测的新工具和评价增加自然资本的经济/社会效益。这些案例的仔细整合将展示西南部对其自然环境的高度依赖如何提供前所未有的机会，以提供变革性的经济效益。SWEEP联盟汇集了环境科学家，经济学家，社会和健康科学家的独特强大组合。一个“影响研究员”团队将与合作伙伴一起提供影响案例并确定新的SWEEP活动的范围。合作伙伴将参与设计、管理和交付，确保所有活动与用户需求保持一致，并充分整合，最大限度地提高NERC的投资回报。进一步的价值来自于与新的“先锋”的一致性，这将是政府25年计划的典范。在全国仅有的五个“先驱者”中，有两个将在西南部，为25 YEP提供唯一的综合陆地-海洋测试平台。通过与参与先驱者的商业和政策机构合作，SWEEP将成为环境主导的区域增长的国家旗舰。

SWEEP brings together a unique blend of academics, businesses and policymakers to place 'natural capital' - those elements of nature producing value for people - at the heart of regional decision-making and business processes in the South West (SW). Focussing on the Heart of the South West and Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) regions, SWEEP will radically transform the extent to which NERC science drives sustainable economic growth, improves policy, decision-making and resilience, delivers value for money and enhances health and wellbeing.The UK Government has placed sustainable use of natural capital at the centre of its 25 Year Environment Plan (25YEP). With 800km of spectacular coastline and over a quarter of land within National Parks/Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the SW is rich in natural capital. It is particularly reliant on these natural assets and the ecosystem services deriving from them to power economic growth, attracting more domestic tourists and with higher employment in direct natural capital usage (e.g. agriculture, fisheries) than any other UK region. However, there is also more potential for natural capital-led economic growth; productivity is low, with Gross Value Added 20% below national average and the lowest mean incomes nationally. Heavy reliance on natural capital also brings economic vulnerability and challenges from increasing occurrences of storms, flooding, degradation and pollution that damage that capital and limit economic growth.SWEEP and its business and policy partners have co-designed a work programme utilising NERC-funded research to develop an integrated, cross-sectoral, 'whole system' approach to natural capital-led growth. The region's natural assets are inextricably linked, so traditional decision-making focussing on one sector at a time can result in unintended negative consequences for others. For example agricultural subsidies can lead to. contaminants from land bordering rivers lowering downstream water quality, affecting aquaculture, fisheries, tourism and health. SWEEP will address these problems, realising the benefits of integrated, whole system decision making through five interwoven 'Impact Themes', aiming to: 1) co-build tools to help business and government understand both the economic and environmental consequences of decisions; and 2) co-develop new business opportunities and natural capital markets giving both private and public sector organisations the means and incentive to improve nature's services, reducing their costs and risk exposure and improving their benefits.With partners we have developed an initial set of 'Impact Cases', each addressing one or more Impact Themes, which will commence at the outset for rapid delivery of impact. They include development of new tools for natural hazard prediction and evaluation of economic/social benefits of enhancing natural capital. Careful integration across these Cases will demonstrate how the SW's high dependence on its natural environment can provide unprecedented opportunities to deliver transformative economic benefits. The SWEEP consortium brings together a uniquely strong mix of environmental scientists, economists, social and health scientists. A team of 'Impact Fellows' will be embedded with partners to deliver the Impact Cases and scope new SWEEP activities. Partners will be integral to design, management and delivery, ensuring that all activities are aligned with user needs and fully integrated, maximising return on NERC's investment. Further value comes from alignment with the new 'Pioneers', which will be exemplars for the Government's 25YEP. Of only five 'Pioneers' nationally, two will be in the SW, providing the only integrated terrestrial-marine testbed for the 25 YEP. By working with the business and policy institutions involved in the Pioneers, SWEEP will act as a national flagship for environment-led regional growth.