The integrity of natural ecosystems is now recognized as being crucial to the health of global financial and capital market systems. Bringing together appropriate investors, buyers and sellers will help to maintain ecosystem services and assets, and will ensure continuing global prosperity and environmental security. A number of markets already have started to trade waste emissions, water rights and carbon, as well as creating attractive investment opportunities through the securitization of carbon sinks.

The Katoomba Group process, begun in 1999 in Australia, is helping to develop an understanding of the interplay of public and private sector benefits created by natural asset markets. Like earlier Katoomba gatherings, this meeting in London provided a forum for bringing together pioneer market developers with early-stage investors, analysts and risk managers. Over 40 innovators, from 10 countries in North America, South America, Europe and Australia, shared their experience with 182 participants in the public conference on March 13 and 75 participants in the private seminar held on March 14.