Companies that continue to degrade nature not only endanger ecosystems, but ultimately put their own survival at risk. That is the clear warning from a new international Business & Biodiversity Assessment by IPBES, the global scientific platform on biodiversity. Researchers from the University of Twente contributed to the report, which was approved today by representatives of more than 150 countries.
The report sets out scientifically robust methods that help companies assess both their impact on biodiversity and their dependence on it. The message is clear: working with nature is not optional for business, but essential. Not just for a company’s image, but for its core operations.
Wieteke Willemen, professor at the University of Twente and one of the report’s lead authors, says: “I am proud that the University of Twente has contributed to this report. We see ourselves as a fourth-generation entrepreneurial university, where knowledge, society and business come together. This international report confirms that it is precisely this combination that is needed to tackle major challenges such as biodiversity loss.”
The report was approved during an intensive meeting in Manchester. Against the backdrop of a turbulent global political climate, the discussions underscored that nature loss poses increasingly serious risks and that new economic models, new policy instruments and new ways of working are urgently needed.
Nature is not a niche problem
According to Willemen, it is time to fundamentally rethink how we view nature: "The idea that nature is only the domain of biologists or conservationists is outdated. Nature affects us all. Smartly dealing with nature involves policy and regulation, economic and financial systems, social norms and values, technology and data, and the knowledge and capacity to use them. This report makes those connections visible and shows what companies, governments and financiers can do to improve that relationship.”
The assessment shows that companies affect biodiversity both directly and indirectly, for example, through global supply chains. This applies not only to sectors closely linked to nature, such as agriculture or tourism, but also to industry and high-tech. Semiconductor factories, for instance, depend on a stable supply of cooling water, while biodiversity loss ultimately affects entire value chains.
Economic system plays a key role
Klaudia Prodani, PhD candidate at the Faculty of Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences (BMS) at the University of Twente and IPBES fellow, stresses that biodiversity loss cannot be separated from the economic system: “The report shows that the knowledge and data needed to green the financial system are largely already available. Greening the financial system is ultimately a matter of political will, not a lack of data or measurement tools. Central banks and financial policymakers can steer financial flows towards economic activities that are less harmful to nature and the environment.”
According to Prodani, close collaboration between ecologists, economists and social scientists is essential. “How we measure nature also shapes how we define the problem — and which solutions we take seriously.” The report does not stop at international recommendations. The Dutch experts involved have agreed to actively translate the findings into the Dutch context and policy practice.
Willemen says: “Together with the official Dutch delegation, the Ministry of LVVN, we have agreed to help translate the insights from this report to the Dutch context. Only then can we move forward with better policy and better choices in practice.”
About IPBES
The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) is the global scientific body on biodiversity and ecosystem services, often described as ‘the IPCC for biodiversity’. With more than 150 member countries, IPBES assesses the state of nature worldwide and provides policy options based on the best available knowledge.
Several Dutch scientists contributed to this assessment over a period of more than two years. On behalf of the University of Twente, the contributors were Wieteke Willemen (Professor of Spatial Dynamics of Ecosystem Services; Faculty of ITC), Klaudia Prodani (PhD candidate, Knowledge, Transformation & Society; Faculty of BMS) and Yue Dou (Faculty of ITC).
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