Event Summary: State of Finance for Nature

On December 6, we were pleased to host another Ideas for Breakfast event. This time, we had the opportunity to have as guests the UN Environment Program (UNEP) Climate Finance Unit so they could share their new State of Finance for Nature report with our members

Here are our three main takeaways.

First, the report presents an overview of the current financing going to nature-based solutions, estimated at $ 154B. Most of the funds are coming from the public sector.  The private sector is only responsible for $ 26B of the current investments. However, the needs are much greater. By 2025, financing to nature-based solutions should double, and by 2050, it should quadruple the meet the needs of the planet and attain the climate, biodiversity, and land degradation neutrality targets.

Second, the report emphasized that even if investments to nature-based solutions increased substantially, neutrality targets won’t be attained unless harmful governmental subsidies (totalling between $495B-$1.57T) to energy, agriculture and fisheries are eliminated.  There is no point in taking one step forward while taking two steps back.

Finally, the report makes the case that business and finance sectors should prioritize nature-positive investment and lending mechanisms as well as identifying and disclosing nature-negative impacts, using tools like TCFD and TNFD. Eliminating all practices inducing nature-negative impacts should be a top priority.