Background Environmental protection and management policies continue to be drawn up in the EU, and it is becoming increasingly important, as a result, to evaluate ecosystems. Such assessments have been incorporated into various EU planning documents, including the Biodiversity Strategy 2011 – 2020, which requires Member States to identify, map and assess ecosystems and their services. In Latvia, however, such practices have not yet been introduced. In other countries, monetary assessments of ecosystems and their services are widely carried out, and the decision-making process is based on these results. Negative assessments often result from a lack of management strategies and evaluation approaches, particularly in areas with increased anthropogenic load. In particular, municipal areas are often badly managed. In order to explain the importance of natural capital to decision makers, entrepreneurs and the general public, it is essential to assess the monetary value of ecosystems. Objectives The LIFE EcosystemServices project will introduce an innovative approach to the conservation of natural values, while balancing those values with social and economic considerations. It will achieve this objective by providing knowledge that can be used in selecting development scenarios for different regions of Latvia and the entire country, as well as other EU countries. This innovative approach will be developed according to best EU practices and the use of environmental economic indicators (including the economic assessment of the ecosystems). In this way, the project will help update existing practice for the implementation of spatial development plans, nature conservation plans and other related planning documents in Latvia, and in the selected pilot target areas in particular. The specific aims of the project are to: Adopt the international practices and experiences in economic valuation of ecosystems and their services for different scenarios in Latvia, creating a clear, comprehensive assessment system; Pilot the implementation of the developed assessment system in two areas; Map the ecosystems and their services in the selected pilot areas in order to determine the current situation; Carry out an economic evaluation of the identified ecosystem services by applying various existing methods integrated into an innovative methodological approach; Draw up and evaluate development scenarios for the selected areas; Incorporate the results and recommendations of the scenario evaluations into municipal planning documents; Update the Nature Conservation Plans for the Ķemeri National Park and the Piejūra Nature Park by including new areas into the protected territories and updating the ecological planning of the existing areas; Update the Spatial Development Plan of the Municipality of Saulkrasti, based on the results of the new methodological approach; and Make recommendations for applying the new approach in municipal decision-making and spatial-planning processes. Expected results: Multilayer maps of ecosystems and their services for the selected areas (two maps); A new methodological approach based on the innovative integration and verification of existing methods into municipal decision-making and spatial-planning processes; The economic evaluation of ecosystems and their services for the selected areas; The economic evaluation of development scenarios for the selected areas; Updated Nature Conservation Plans for Ķemeri National Park and Piejūra Nature Park; An updated Spatial Development Plan for Saulkrasti Municipality; Recommendations for the application of the new methodological approach for municipal decision-making and spatial-planning processes; and Networking with local municipalities, Latvian institutions, international institutions and organisations.