Description
Tapping into the economic potential of endemic species (e.g. açaí, buriti, and pequí in tropical ecosystems) could be a strategy to create incentives for biodiversity conservation while supporting local livelihoods. However, past experiences have shown that scaling up such markets can lead to unsustainable intensive production systems, triggering ecological degradation and social inequalities. Voluntary Sustainability Standards (VSS) have emerged as a governance tool to address these challenges by setting environmental, social and economic criteria for production and trade. While past research has explored the role that VSS have in agricultural commodity markets, highlighting their (often heterogeneous) impacts across a wide range social, economic, and environmental indicators, their role in the promotion of sustainable markets for endemic species remains underexplored. Given that these species are often deeply intertwined with local ecosystems, traditional knowledge, and cultural heritage, and their production systems are typically based on small-scale extractivism, there are some unique challenges to scaling up sustainably. Building on the existing literature on VSS, we discuss if and to what extent VSS can be used to ensure sustainable production practices, equitable benefit-sharing, and biodiversity conservation in these particular settings, thus contributing to the broader discussion on leveraging markets for conservation.| Period | 27 Aug 2025 |
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| Event title | XVIII EAAE Congress: Food System Transformation in Challenging Times |
| Event type | Conference/symposium |
| Location | Bonn, GermanyShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |