This webinar is courtesy of the EBM Tools Network. It originally aired on Thursday, May 2, 2013.
Social Values for Ecosystem Services (SolVES) is a GIS-based tool to assess, map, and quantify nonmarket values of ecosystem services as perceived by stakeholders. These perceived social values often correspond to cultural ecosystem services, such as aesthetics and recreation. These values can be compared among different stakeholder groups distinguished by their attitudes and preferences regarding public uses, such as motorized recreation or logging. SolVES derives a nonmonetary, 10-point social-values metric, the value index (VI), from a combination of spatial and nonspatial responses to public attitude and preference surveys. It then models the relationship between VI and characteristics of the underlying environment, such as average distance to water and dominant land cover. Additionally, SolVES facilitates the transfer of social-value models to areas where primary survey data are not available. Learn more about SolVES at solves.cr.usgs.gov.