Accounting and Valuation Component of Implementing Nature-Based Solutions

Nature offers solutions to many economic and social problems that increase natural capital and contribute to biodiversity. Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) are individual complex projects, and the costs and results of their implementation are essential objects of accounting and analysis. The article aims to determine the prerequisites for the transition to NBS, to reveal the conceptual principles of designing and implementing such solutions, and the models for assessing and accounting for the results of their implementation. Data for the study were collected through content analysis of research articles from the Scopus database, publications of the UN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and European institutions such as the European Commission and Eurostat. Thanks to the historical and logical method, the prerequisites for the transition to NBS were determined, which were reflected in international documents and political initiatives. Using the methods of analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, and abstraction, the authors revealed the conceptual principles of designing and implementing such solutions. The system approach allowed the formation of an integrated model for assessing the effectiveness of NBS. The study's results confirm the versatility of NBS as an object of accounting, control, and analysis, which requires flexibility, creativity, and a non-standard approach to assessing the implementation's environmental, economic, and social results. In this regard, in contrast to traditional financial accounting, several alternative accounting models have emerged that form the accounting and evaluation component of NBS implementation. Today, the main accounting models in the world that help measure the effectiveness of NBS and integrate them into state, corporate, or environmental policy are Ecosystem Accounting, Natural Capital Accounting, Carbon Accounting, and Socio-Economic Accounting. To assess NBS in practice, accounting tools and statistical analysis methods are used in combination with modern information technologies for ecosystem surveys, collection, and processing of diverse data, which corresponds to the trend of comprehensive digitalization of management processes. The results of this study contribute to the development of alternative accounting models and form the agenda for further research on accounting and assessment of NBS.