The TEEB study aims to:

• Integrate ecological and economic knowledge to structure the evaluation of ecosystem services under different scenarios.
• Recommend appropriate valuation methodologies for different contexts.
• Examine the economic costs of biodiversity decline and the costs and benefits of actions to reduce these losses.
• Develop "toolkits" for policy makers at international, regional and local levels in order to foster sustainable development and better conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity.
• Enable easy access to leading information and tools for improved biodiversity practice for the business community – from the perspective of managing risks, addressing opportunities, and measuring impacts.
• Raise public awareness of the individual’s impact on biodiversity and ecosystems, as well as identifying areas where individual action can make a positive difference.

In practical terms, TEEB seeks to show that economics can be a powerful instrument in biodiversity policy,  both by supporting decision processes and by forging discourses between science,  economics and governing structures. The legitimate and effective use of economic instruments in biodiversity conservation depends on their appropriate application and interpretation.  Several products to enable this are envisaged for Phase II, all benefiting from the current process of international input and collaboration:

• For Policy-makers and Administrators:  A " policy toolkit " providing guidance for policy-makers, covering subsidies and incentives, environmental liability, new market infrastructure, national income accounting,  cost-benefit analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, and methods for implementing Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) and Access and Benefits Sharing (ABS).
• For Enterprises:  Information on how to quantify and disclose, mitigate or offset corporate impacts on ecosystems and biodiversity, as well as case studies of successful business models that recognize the value of ecosystem services and biodiversity.
• For Citizens:  Information on the value of ecosystems and biodiversity, as well as examples of how to reduce their impact on wild nature and influence producers through their private purchasing decisions.