What if the Amazon Rainforest was a global corporation?

Key messages:

·????? COP16 has 3 priority actions: establishing a multilateral mechanism for fair benefit-sharing in biodiversity conservation, addressing the biodiversity finance gap, and translating "The Biodiversity Plan" into national action plans.

·????? The upcoming COP16 presents a crucial opportunity for countries to align their strategies with biodiversity conservation targets.

·????? Economic development must be pursued in a way that is compatible with environmental sustainability to meet international obligations.

·????? International cooperation and private sector engagement are essential for achieving biodiversity conservation and climate goals.

·????? Companies are increasingly being held accountable for their environmental and social impacts, driving the need for sustainable business practices.

·????? Innovation and green entrepreneurship offer avenues for inclusive growth while safeguarding the Amazon ecosystem for future generations.

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As the Amazon Forest grapples with complex challenges, the upcoming biodiversity COP16 conference emerges as a critical moment for nations and corporations to address them. Imagine the Amazon as a global corporation, with Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana as its primary shareholders. Renowned for its biodiversity and natural resources and its crucial role as a global climate regulator, it faces risks such as environmental degradation, biodiversity loss and socio-economic pressures from mining and agriculture. At the heart of it, a familiar debate: to balance economic expansion with environmental conservation.

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A recent Nature study reveals that 47% of the Amazonian Forest is under stress due to various factors including deforestation driven by agricultural activities. This destruction of the forest contributes significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions, as highlighted in the 2019 IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Land.

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Finding the right balance between economic development, conservation and social well-being is the responsibility for nations under the Convention on Biological Diversity. Through the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework – or “The Biodiversity Plan” - countries have agreed to ambitious goals to implement measures by 2030 to transform societal interactions with biodiversity and to achieve a shared vision of coexisting harmoniously with nature by 2050, across 23 specific targets.

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This week kicked off the first of two preparatory technical meetings, with the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA 26) and the fourth meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI 4) next week to advance discussions towards COP16, on key topics including the indicators for reporting on the monitoring framework, national implementation status, and mobilization of financial resources for implementation of “The Biodiversity Plan”.

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The upcoming COP16 to be held in Colombia in October, will have three priority actions: to agree on operationalizing the multilateral mechanism for the fair and equitable sharing of benefits from Digital Sequence Information?on genetic resources, including a global fund; address the biodiversity finance gap of 700 billion dollars per year to and to translate “The Biodiversity Plan” into national action. At COP16, countries will report on progress made including specific actions taken to conserve and sustainably manage biodiversity in their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans and review indicators to measure biodiversity loss.

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“The Biodiversity Plan” is the first time in history that actions specifically target the private sector, acknowledging its pivotal role in driving the necessary changes in the production system. Some of the other biodiversity targets for companies are on subsidies harmful to biodiversity; pollution; agriculture, fisheries, sustainable consumption, and food waste reduced by half.

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As the world strives to address the intertwined challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, the synergies between economic advancement and environmental conservation have never been more apparent for companies. This is why global professional services company EY is asking its clients: what is your natural capital strategy?

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Companies need to rethink how they source and use raw materials as they transition to a low-carbon economy. The new EY Nature Hub targets some of the main market pain points, such as supply chain risks, regulation, creating value with biomes and biodiversity, combating deforestation, and creating financial instruments that enable development with a standing forest.

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Recently, the Task Force on Nature-Related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) introduced obligations for companies to assess their usage of natural resources with recommendations for risk management, disclosure on their impacts and opportunities related to nature.

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Climate change and biodiversity loss share common causes and solutions can address both simultaneously. At the climate change COP28 in Dubai last year, nations emphasized collaborative efforts to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss through integrated planning and alignment. This trend is set to continue with the integration of biodiversity considerations into the global climate negotiations ahead of COP30 to be held in Brazil in 2025.

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Governments and companies navigate a tough balance between profit and purpose, economic growth, and environmental conservation. COP16 is an opportunity for nations and corporations to make peace with nature, to promote innovation, and champion a sustainable future for the Amazon and the planet.