Unblocking the flow of biodiversity data for business and finance: issues, challenges and opportunities

There are increasing internal and external pressures on the business sector to enhance sustainability, and move towards nature-positive outcomes that contribute to global goals, such as Target 15 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF). However, many companies are still unable to unpack what biodiversity means for them and, as a result, find the subject daunting. Crucially, they do not know how or where to obtain the data they need for environmental planning, monitoring, reporting and disclosure.

The challenges facing businesses in accessing and using biodiversity data are numerous. Biodiversity cannot be measured by a single metric like carbon, yet the landscape of business-specific indicators is crowded, competitive and confused; none cover all business applications in all biomes and many rely on old secondary data or solitary blunt metrics. Indicators proposed for business are often different and disconnected from those used by governments, NGOs and conservation experts. As a result, our recent research shows that businesses are significantly more likely than other data users to be unclear on what biodiversity indicators to use. The proliferation of business-specific guidelines, tools, and databases risks adding to the confusion.

We argue here that lessons learned from decades of conservation science and practice can provide solutions for business and are already influencing the development of relevant approaches, tools and practices. Case studies used to illustrate progress and solutions focus on practical examples in the renewable energy sector, agriculture, and sports organizations.

Common solutions that emerge in adapting conservation approaches to business include following best practices in monitoring by using a pressure-state-response-benefit framework of scalable, linked indicators, including those linked to the KMGBF. Relevant global or regional databases and platforms can provide some key data, but this needs to be complemented by primary data collected with methods chosen based on the indicators used, feasibility, budget and capacity. Businesses do not need to tackle biodiversity alone. It is notable that many of the companies making the most progress have well-established partnerships with conservation organizations or consultancies with the requisite knowledge, experience and tools to help.