Ideas worth spreading

What a living whale is worth -- and why the economy should protect nature

1,263,256 views | Ralph Chami • TED2022

How much is one living blue whale worth in the fight against climate change? A lot more than you may think, says financial economist Ralph Chami. He explains the value of bringing the language of dollars and cents to conservation -- and offers his vision of a new economy that would profit off regenerating nature, not extracting from it.

How much is one living blue whale worth in the fight against climate change? A lot more than you may think, says financial economist Ralph Chami. He explains the value of bringing the language of dollars and cents to conservation -- and offers his vision of a new economy that would profit off regenerating nature, not extracting from it.

This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Countries, companies, consumers, investors and households are called upon to invest in the protection, restoration and rejuvenation of nature — blue and green, flora and fauna — in tackling both climate change and the loss of nature and its biodiversity.

About the speaker

Ralph Chami

Financial economist

See speaker profile

Ralph Chami champions a new economic paradigm that is equitable and nature-positive.

Ralph Chami et al. | Nature Climate Change, 2022 | Article

"Value Wild Animals' carbon services to fill the biodiversity financing gap"

This paper presents a rationale and the method for valuing the services of wild animals as climate mitigation allies.

Ralph Chami et al. | Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, 2022 | Article

"Financing conservation by valuing carbon services produced by wild animals"

This paper establishes the framework for valuing the ecosystem services of wild animals.

Ralph Chami et al. | Frontiers in Climate, 2022 | Article

"Toward a Nature-Based Economy"

This paper develops a new economic paradigm that is nature and people positive.

Ralph Chami et al. | Finance for Biodiversity, 2022 | Article

The Future of Nature Markets

This paper provides a landscape of emerging nature markets, highlights the challenges faced in developing these markets and provides key principles to help ensure nature markets are both equitable and nature-positive.

Ralph Chami et al. | Frontiers in Climate, 2021 | Article

"The Role of Blue Carbon in Climate Change Mitigation and Carbon Stock Conservation"

This paper looks at the role of blue carbon, fauna and flora, coastal and deep sea, in carbon sequestration and helping to reduce climate change.

Ralph Chami et al. | Springer Climate, 2022 | Article

"Value of Nature to Our Health and Economic Well-Being: A Framework with Application to Elephants and Whales"

This paper develops the framework for valuing the services of wild animals, including marine and terrestrial species, and shows how markets can be built around valuing natural capital.

Fabio Berzaghi et al. | Nature Geoscience, 2019 | Article

"Carbon stocks in central African forests enhanced by elephant disturbance"

This paper reveals the role of large herbivores, such as elephants, in enhancing carbon stocks in the forest of the Congo basin.

Learn more

This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Countries, companies, consumers, investors and households are called upon to invest in the protection, restoration and rejuvenation of nature — blue and green, flora and fauna — in tackling both climate change and the loss of nature and its biodiversity.