Report: When Finance Talks Nature

NEW REPORT: “When Finance Talks Nature – Creating a common language for ambitious and nature-positive sustainable finance taxonomies by aligning common design features and integrating nature-related scenario analysis” (Commissioned by WWF)

What’s in it?

In this report, we reveal that while a growing number of countries is developing sustainable finance taxonomies, the vast majority fails to adequately address biodiversity or nature loss.

This is a crucial shortcoming because over half of the world’s GDP – $44 trillion – is moderately or highly dependent on nature and its services. A rapid and substantial shift in capital is necessary to prevent irreversible damages to ecosystem services and biodiversity and if we fail to do so, not only will nature feel the consequences. This could also lead to the destabilization of the financial system and global economy.

To enable this shift of capital, a conducive framework is necessary. Sustainable finance taxonomies are one of the critical tools we have under our belt as taxonomies define which economic activities and investments are considered “green” and “sustainable”. For taxonomies to properly inform global financial markets and facilitate adequate investment in the “green transformation,” it is crucial that they include strong protections against biodiversity and nature loss. National policy action, international alignment and a strong, forward-looking perspective of biodiversity finance taxonomies are also needed.

Urgent action is now required in all G20 countries to ramp up efforts to include nature-related aspects into their existing or developing taxonomies which could help businesses and financial institutions avoid further negative impacts on biodiversity and increase the benefits of taxonomies.

Read about all of this and more in our report 

COP15 in Montreal

International negotiations on biodiversity took place during COP15 in Montreal, Canada, and represented a historic opportunity to kick-start transformative change and reverse biodiversity loss this decade.

WWF hosted an event at COP15 to discuss the findings of the report with financial market participants and government representatives. Climate & Company’s CEO Ingmar Juergens was present to give a presentation on the report When Finance Talks Nature. Rewatch the presentation here (Ingmar’s presentation is from minute 8 to 22):