Biodiversity Loss as a Business Risk

Let’s face it: the climate clock is ticking and the carbon market is facing some challenges. But let's not wait for the perfect solution, let's take collective action to reinvent the carbon market and learn as we go.

In an era marked by the urgency of climate action, global commitments such as the Paris Agreement and the Kunming Montreal Accord have thrust environmental issues into the spotlight. While the focus on mitigating greenhouse gas emissions remains pivotal, there is a growing recognition that addressing the loss of biodiversity and investing in nature are inseparable components of a comprehensive strategy to combat climate change.

In that combat, corporates have a crucial role to play in mitigating climate change and biodiversity loss. In 2022, 44% of all companies have made climate commitments (MSCI, 2022).

While many companies have initiated emission reduction plans across their value chain, carbon removal solutions are "unavoidable if net zero emissions are to be achieved” (IPCC, April 2022). Not only are they necessary to counterbalance hard-to-abate residual emissions, but also to speed up things, as actions are by far too slow.

Additionally, companies operating in today's global economy face increasingly pronounced business risks associated with biodiversity loss. As 85% of companies have a great dependency to nature, companies have to address nature loss as a business risk mitigation.

Many forward-thinking companies have already recognised the need to address biodiversity loss as part of their corporate sustainability initiatives. Pledges to protect and restore natural habitats, reduce deforestation, and support wildlife conservation are becoming commonplace. As of 2022, 20% of S&P 500 have biodiversity protection on their agenda.

Nature-based solutions could address around 1/3 of global GHG emissions reductions needed by 2030 to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. They are available quickly, and at scale,?with great value-for-money. That is why “ecosystem restoration, afforestation and reforestation” is ranked ranked 5th out of 32 identified classification opportunities for scaling up climate action (IPCC, 2023).

Nevertheless, one cannot ignore the crisis shaking the voluntary carbon market, with nearly 40% of companies concerned by the lack of transparency and regulation and various media reporting a lack of clarity and clear methodologies on the avoidance carbon credits.

So what do we do? Do we wait for new frameworks, new legislations??The clock is ticking, we can't wait for the perfect solution, but by being pragmatic and learning from past mistakes we can move quickly.

NatureRe provides solutions catered to corporates' needs and re-invents the carbon market, focusing on carbon removal projects with high biodiversity and social co-benefits through a unique and resilient method: Assisted Natural Regeneration.

Assisted Natural Regeneration consists in?simply taking away what keeps nature from restoring itself (i.e. invasive species, chemicals, cattle ranching) and let nature do most of the work. It allows for full ecosystems restoration and guarantees permanence. The ecosystem is?much more resilient compared to a single tree species reforestation, for example.?We also ensure land conservation by certifying restored lands as natural reserves,?to create nature sanctuaries, as currently done in Antioquia, Colombia.

We have a strong direct impact on carbon (through removal), on biodiversity (through full ecosystem recovery), and on water (through micro-watersheds supplying aqueducts) with tech-verified measures. We monitor the ecosystem recovery progress through our camera traps which capture the rich fauna (21 installed on our first project in Antioquia, Colombia) and multiple on-site measures on flora and water. Our local NatureRe team manages the properties to ensure smooth operations and guarantee land protection.

The urgency of addressing biodiversity loss in conjunction with the climate crisis cannot be overstated. It is not only a moral imperative but also an essential element of long-term business resilience. Act now and invest in nature, restore biodiversity and remove carbon at scale!

Contacts:

• Daniel Pfeifer, CEO - [email protected]
• Marie-Sophie Teyssier, Head of Marketing - [email protected]
• Stefanie Hauer, Board Member - [email protected]
• Sven Kapell, Business Development - [email protected]