Commissioned by the United Nations Secretary–General in 2000, and completed in 2005, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA), based on the findings of 34 “sub-global” assessments carried out in a diverse set of ecosystems in sites around the world, provides a state-of-the-art appraisal of the condition and trends in the world’s ecosystems and the services they provide.
The MA presents compelling evidence that underlines the urgency and necessity of restoring, conserving, and sustainably managing our ecosystems. Most important, the assessment shows that, with appropriate actions, it is possible to reverse the degradation of many ecosystem services over the next 50 years. By providing invaluable information to policy makers, the MA seeks to help ensure that the required changes in current policy and practice undertaken will be evidence based and informed by the best available scientific analysis.