Payment for ecosystem services and its applications in India

Ecosystem services are the processes of nature that directly or indirectly benefit human beings. These services need to be conserved through incentive-based market approaches for a sustainable future. Payment for ecosystem services (PES) is one approach that aims to manage natural resources and ecosystem stewardship, wherein the users recompense the conservators of the ecosystem services. While PES has numerous benefits in enhancing the awareness of linkages between human well-being (e.g. poverty alleviation) and ecosystem services, it is constrained by major challenges, especially in developing countries like India. This article reviews the significant issues and challenges of environmental marketing in India and suggests measures to promote PES.