Ulrike Troeger works at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Leipzig. With a background in landscape ecology and nature conservation, she has worked for German government institutions, international conservation NGOs, and the development sector. The focus of her work has been links between nature conservation and human development. She contributed to and led participatory ecosystem services assessments in Africa and EECCA to create relevant policy information and build capacities. At UFZ’s environmental policy department, she has been involved in the GIZ-UFZ Green Value Initiative. She was responsible for implementing three case studies in Africa where the natural capital perspective on conservation areas is applied to co-create valuable information for local and regional decision-making. Her research interest is in capturing the potential of socio-ecological transformation in policies.