NatCap is conducting an InVEST training and workshop in Nepal this week, hosted by the South Asian Network for Development and Environmental Economics (SANDEE). The workshop is focusing on the impact of land-use land-cover changes in watersheds of the Himalayas and integrating ecosystem service values into management plans for conservation, particularly payment for ecosystem service (PES) programs. The workshop was organized by Steve Polasky at the University of Minnesota's Institute for the Environment (IonE), and is led by Dr. Nirmal Bhagabati, conservation scientist at WWF-US. Dr. Bhagabati also organized and led a training and workshop in Bhutan last week for government officials, scientists, and environmentalists, in which they explored how InVEST can be used to support sustainable land-use planning initiatives and promote green economies in Southeast Asia. Hosted by WWF-Bhutan, the workshop also provided an opportunity for NatCap to collaborate with stakeholders and glaciologists to help us incorporate glacial melt into InVEST's hydrology models.     

We also recently held trainings in Belize, Mexico City, Portugal, and Quito, Ecuador: 

• The Instituto Superior Tecnico generously hosted the Lisbon training, which was part of a short university course entitled "Evaluating ecosystem services for decision-making." The course taught ecosystem services assessment, modeling, and valuation methods, and included hands-on training in InVEST as well as introductions to other innovative software tools used to model and map ecosystem services.
• The Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP) hosted NatCap for an InVEST training in Mexico City that emphasized the valuation of ecosystem services relating to freshwater issues and coastal protection.
• In Belize, we included an InVEST training into a workshop hosted by our partners the Coastal Zone Management Authority and Institute (CZMAI) on climate adaptation and coastal zone management planning for colleagues from throughout the Caribbean.   
• The last week of November, NatCap held a workshop and training in Quito, Ecuador for the Latin American Water Funds Partnership, in order to provide feedback on our upcoming Resource Investment Optimization System (RIOS) water funds software tool. 

Next year the Natural Capital Project is planning to offer large trainings on our approach and tools to be held in the United States, Europe, Latin America, and Asia, as well as a number of other smaller InVEST trainings around the world. Exact locations and dates have not been set yet, but likely candidates for NatCap trainings include London, Washington DC, New England, Cambodia, Vancouver Island, and Gabon. Visit our website or sign up to receive more information about future trainings as it becomes available.