Ecosystem Integrity Index

Assesses the overall health of an ecosystem with focus on structure, composition and function.

availability

On Demand

Now

indicator tier

Gold

unit

Index values ranging from 0 (degraded) to 1 (intact)

spatial resolution

300m

measurement frequency

Annual

measurement level

Plot

historic data availability

2025

Forescast data availability

N/A

applicable crop types

All

applicable land type

Grassland

Conservation

Cropland

Forestry

compliance frameworks

Nature Positive Initiative (NPI), TNFD, SBTN, CSRD (ESRS E4)

description

The Ecosystem Integrity Index (EII) is a composite measure designed to assess the integrity of terrestrial ecosystems, defined as the combination of three key components: structural, compositional, and functional integrity. The EII provides a quantitative score, ranging from 0 (highly degraded) to 1 (fully intact), allowing for the measurement, monitoring, and reporting of ecosystem health.

methodology

This implementation of the EII follows a framework published by UNEP WCMC (Hill et al., 2022). It quantifies the subcomponents of compositional intactness (Biodiversity Intactness Index, Gassert et al. 2022)), structural intactness (derived from Global Human Modification footprint (Theobald et al., 2025) and functional integrity (based on remotely-sensed net primary productivity from Sentinel 3). The operational spatial resolution is 300m. Data will be updated annually.

validation

The sub-components of the EII are validated during model development against hold-out data and plausibility. The BII has been evaluated using hold-out sets by Gassert et al. (2022), the human modification layer has been peer-reviewed and validated by Theobald et al. (2025). Productivity data itself has been validated by the Copernicus Land monitoring center. Further modelling of potential net primary productivity potential has been validated using spatial hold-out techniques.