We aim to develop the solutions needed to embed the values of biodiversity into financial decision making.
We will support researchers from environmental, economic and social science disciplines, at any career stage. We encourage collaboration with relevant finance sector organisations.
The ‘Integrating biodiversity and finance for a nature positive future’ programme will develop the solutions needed to embed the values of biodiversity into financial decision making.
This investment will build a national multi-stakeholder community that can drive the development of knowledge, tools and skills to incorporate biodiversity-related risks and opportunities into planning, reporting and investment decisions for the finance and business sectors.
Our economy and our environment are inseparable. Environmental science plays a vital role in identifying environmental problems and their cost to the economy and society.
The UK is a world leader in environmental science and understanding how our environment is changing. NERC is leading the way in building understanding of coupled economic and environment systems, enabling us to judge the balance of economic growth and environmental sustainability that will be fundamental to the future of humankind.
The environmental science community has the capacity to fill knowledge gaps and provide environmental data and evidence to develop tools to incorporate biodiversity, as an asset or value, into private finance. In doing so, the community and financial sector can work together to help reverse the global trend of biodiversity depletion. This will be achieved through a change in business and consumer behaviour for a nature-positive future.
The UK government 2023 Green finance strategy (GOV.UK) incorporates both nature and climate adaptation into its green finance policy framework.
Integrating finance and biodiversity for a nature positive future will:
NERC is investing £5 million (at 80% full economic cost) in the Integrating finance and biodiversity for a nature positive future programme in two phases.
NERC Phase 1 (the Integrating finance and biodiversity for a nature positive future funding opportunity) has been implemented with 12 scoping projects awarded, and a coordination and integration function to bring the awards together. Read about the scoping projects in the news story: New research will integrate biodiversity and finance.
NERC Phase 2 will establish an interdisciplinary research and innovation network consisting of a virtual hub and associated spokes or partnerships. The network will provide leadership by delivering and supporting a portfolio of activities informed by and built on Phase 1 outcomes.
Innovate UK will invest £2 million for funding for SMEs and larger corporates. Details will be available at a later stage.
Biodiversity is a crucial consideration in how we think about, act on and measure economic growth and prosperity. The World Economic Forum Global risks report 2022 puts loss of biodiversity in the top three global risks and the UK government 2023 Green finance strategy (GOV.UK) recognises it as a financial risk.
The finance system has a key role in shaping how the global economy responds to the intertwined challenges of biodiversity loss and climate change. We must unlock private finance that protects nature and disincentives harm.
Integrating biodiversity into finance frameworks and identifying a nature-positive future is a national policy and international leadership ambition for government that will impact private finance.
In the current economic system, the cost of depleting biodiversity (as defined ‘sensu lato’ by the Convention on Biological Diversity) is hidden, and the benefits biodiversity provides to human wellbeing and the economy are not fully understood.
This lack of knowledge means that business behaviour is not incentivised through financing and investments to either:
Having access to decision-grade data will allow financial institutions and business to incorporate biodiversity-related risks and opportunities into their strategic planning alongside climate, risk management and asset allocation decisions.
The Integrating finance and biodiversity for a nature positive future programme will support networks that will be responsive to the needs of private finance as the biodiversity-finance nexus and wider green finance agenda develops.
The programme recognises that co-design and partnership across researchers, finance sector, business and policy is a must. It will support a holistic approach to fill the knowledge gaps and working in partnerships to help develop the solutions needed to embed the values of biodiversity into finance.
Collaborations between the worlds of finance, academic research and business innovation will accelerate the change we all need to restore and protect our biodiversity for a more resilient planet and economy.
As well as subscribing to updates from UKRI, you can find information via the Integrating finance and biodiversity website.
See the phase 1 funding opportunity: Integrating finance and biodiversity for a nature positive future
Outcomes of related area of investment include:
Email: naturepositive@nerc.ukri.org
Last updated: 17 August 2023
