Our Interconnectedness: 30x30 – the UN Biodiversity Agreement
Perhaps interdependence better describes our relationship with nature. The conversation shifted long ago from the distinction between preservation and conservation to balancing our reliance on the natural resources that make our world go round and the vital role forests, oceans, wetlands, grasslands and peat bogs play as carbon sinks in absorbing nearly 50% of man-made carbon emissions as well as the benefits of natural solutions like coral reefs in protecting vulnerable communities from the impacts of climate change.
The 15th conference of the parties (COP15) to the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity concludes in Montreal today. The conference serves as a biennial convening of global governments to set 10-year goals on conservation and sustainable resource use and to carve a path to mitigate biodiversity loss.
The convention’s 195 signatory nations agreed to protect and restore a minimum of 30% of the planet’s land and water by 2030 and a commitment was made to pay an estimated $30B annually to economically disadvantaged nations through a new biodiversity fund. The 30x30 plan is the most significant biodiversity commitment in history, yet many experts continue to sound the alarm that it may fall short. The last 10-year target set at COP10 in 2010 to halve natural habitat loss and ensure 17% of the earth’s surface were nature reserves by 2020 has not been met.
Humans are responsible for the loss of 83% of all wild animals and 50% of all plants since the beginning of civilization – and one million plant and animal species are now threatened with extinction (UN and National Academy of Sciences data). The causes in descending order are: (1) changes in land and sea use; (2) direct exploitation of organisms; (3) climate change; (4) pollution; and (5) invasive alien species (IPBES Report).
Biodiversity loss also comes at a severe cost to the economy that financial institutions, ratings agencies and framework organizations are coming to understand. The World Economic Forum estimates that $44 trillion – the equivalent of approximately half of global GDP – is generated in industries dependent on nature such as agriculture and construction – and the World Bank estimates that ecosystem depletion could account for a 2.3% loss (about $2.7 trillion) to global GDP by 2030, with disparate impacts to low-income countries.
We need to rethink our relationship with nature. Nature-related risks must be evaluated beyond intrinsic value to include impacts to markets and on business operations and supply chains. The private sector and governments must continue to advance and incentivize better natural resource decision-making – (1) industry must elevate biodiversity and natural resource use along with climate change impacts in setting ESG strategy, targets and policies; (2) the investment sector must continue to progress impact mechanisms, such as natural capital funds and other sustainable finance tools; and (3) the reporting arena must continue to play catch-up on biodiversity – GRI is updating its biodiversity standards and ISSB recently announced steps to include biodiversity standards, in their respective ESG reporting frameworks, and the newest kid on the block, the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) is in beta release of its framework.
Understanding the ecosystem – its intrinsic and economic value, the synergies of biodiversity, climate, and water and land use, and managing the associated risks –is foundational to effective ESG and to a more abundant and resilient world.
