We are increasingly confronted with severe social and economic impacts of environmental degradation all over the world. From a valuation perspective, environmental problems and conflicts originate from trade-offs between values. The urgency and importance to integrate nature's diverse values in decisions and actions stand out more than ever. Valuation, in its broad sense of ‘assigning importance’, is inherently part of most decisions on natural resource and land use. Scholars from different traditions -while moving from heuristic interdisciplinary debate to applied transdisciplinary science- now acknowledge the need for combining multiple disciplines and methods to represent the diverse set of values of nature. This growing group of scientists and practitioners share the ambition to explore how combinations of ecological, socio-cultural and economic valuation tools can support real-life resource and land use decision-making. The current sustainability challenges and the ineffectiveness of single-value approaches to offer relief demonstrate that continuing along a single path is no option. We advocate for the adherence of a plural valuation culture and its establishment as a common practice, by contesting and complementing ineffective and discriminatory single-value approaches. In policy and decision contexts with a willingness to improve sustainability, integrated valuation approaches can be blended in existing processes, whereas in contexts of power asymmetries or environmental conflicts, integrated valuation can promote the inclusion of diverse values through action research and support the struggle for social and environmental justice. The special issue and this editorial synthesis paper bring together lessons from pioneer case studies and research papers, synthesizing main challenges and setting out priorities for the years to come for the field of integrated valuation.JRC.D.2-Water and Marine Resource

The measured calcium carbonate content of soils to a depth of 100 mm at a large urban development site has increased over 18 months at a rate that corresponds to the sequestration of 85 t of CO₂/ha (8.5 kg of CO₂ m^–2) annually. This is a consequence of rapid weathering of calcium silicate and hydroxide minerals derived from the demolition of concrete structures, which releases Ca that combines with CO₂ ultimately derived from the atmosphere, precipitating as calcite. Stable isotope data confirm an atmospheric origin for carbonate carbon, and ¹⁴C dating indicates the predominance of modern carbon in the pedogenic calcite. Trial pits show that carbonation extends to depths of ≥1 m. Work at other sites shows that the occurrence of pedogenic carbonates is widespread in artificially created urban soils containing Ca and Mg silicate minerals. Appropriate management of fewer than 12000 ha of urban land to maximize calcite precipitation has the potential to remove 1 million t of CO₂ from the atmosphere annually. The maximal global potential is estimated to be approximately 700–1200 Mt of CO₂ per year (representing 2.0–3.7% of total emissions from fossil fuel combustion) based on current rates of production of industry-derived Ca- and Mg-bearing materials.