A framework for identifying weather resources and services

Weather is increasingly harnessed, both directly and indirectly, to generate economic, social, and environmental value. Despite this widespread dependence, the opportunities and benefits of weather remain poorly conceptualised and instead, focus is typically around value as it applies to risk reduction. However, across many sectors, decision‑making identifies value in weather conditions and information that relates to creating opportunities and maximising benefits. Direct uses of weather include applications such as wind energy generation or snow for ski tourism, while indirect uses include weather conditions determining the timing of agricultural activities such as sowing or harvesting. These direct and indirect contributions of weather align closely with established concepts of natural resources and ecosystem services. However, weather itself has received limited explicit attention as a resource or service within scientific and economic frameworks.

In this study, we build on theoretical foundations from the ecosystem services literature to conceptualise weather as both a resource and a service, and to clarify the distinction between the two. We propose definitions that emphasise how weather can be directly utilised to create value or indirectly enable value across an array of systems. To establish these definitions, we undertook a systematic literature review to identify how weather is used and harnessed across sectors, including energy, agriculture, transport, tourism, construction, and health. Thematic analysis from this literature was cross mapped to existing theoretical concepts in the literature around other natural resources and services. From this, we developed a new framework for defining weather resources and weather services, which can be applied in a variety of contexts that employ a benefit‑focused framing rather than a hazard‑centric approach.

Applying this framework allows for the identification of the distribution and reliability of weather resources and services, providing a foundation for assessing their economic, social, and environmental value. Such an approach is increasingly important given the increasing reliance on weather‑dependent systems (e.g. energy, water, food). At the same time, anthropogenic climate change is altering the distribution, timing, and reliability of weather, reshaping the availability and performance of weather resources and services in ways that are not yet fully understood. Explicitly conceptualising weather as a resource and service is therefore essential for anticipating future risks and opportunities to maximise economic opportunities, but also for supporting adaptation and mitigation strategies, and informing decision‑making in a rapidly changing climate.