Towards the definition of the term "ecological resources"

A short critical analysis of the term "environmental resources" as a new interdisciplinary concept is presented. The emergence and use of the term "environmental resources" in science and the educational system also presupposes its use in international documents and practice. The higher positioning of "ecological resources" in the system of material and non-material components, including "natural resources", their derivatives and intangible assets, transformed by people's activities, is substantiated. The definition of "ecological resources as material and non-material components of nature and humanity that provide stability and ecological balance in nature and the environment" is proposed. Ecological resources contribute to the sustainability and balance of ecosystems in the use of natural resources and to meet human needs, and also carry out additional functions to support biodiversity, overcome conflicts between people and biodiversity, ecosystem services; provide protection of landscapes, soil and water resources, regulation of local and regional climate and composition of the atmosphere, reconciliation of the economy and ecology. Environmental resources become factors in the competitiveness of the regions, in improving people's well-being. For example, the global network of botanical gardens, which in Russia are unique interdisciplinary objects and integrated ecological resources on the basis of plants, is also an instrument for managing environmental resources.