At Business in the Community NI (BITCNI), we are seeing a growing number of organisations taking climate action by setting emission reduction targets. Whilst these businesses are now getting to grips with assessing climate risks and understanding greenhouse gas reporting requirements, a new kind of environmental reporting is emerging in response to the biodiversity crisis.

Business needs biodiversity

Biodiversity, or biological diversity, has many definitions, but essentially encompasses the variety of life on earth. All plants, animals and fungi fall under the umbrella of biodiversity and the range of ecosystems we see on earth are also included.

Biodiversity is crucial for human survival because it underpins the health and stability of ecosystems, which provide essential services that sustain life. Many of the natural processes that we take for granted are dependent on healthy levels of biodiversity. Plants and algae photosynthesise and release oxygen into the atmosphere, allowing us to breathe. A huge proportion of our crop production is reliant on the work of pollinators, such as butterflies, moths, and bees, and it is estimated that £690 million worth of crops are pollinated by wild insects in the UK every year.

Humans are part of nature and everything we depend on to live as individuals, to thrive as communities and to prosper as businesses depends on the health of nature.

The World Economic Forum’s 2020 Global Risks Report identifies the degradation of biodiversity and the collapse of ecosystems as one of the top five risks that humanity will face in the coming decade. Studies reveal that nature and its services are crucial to generating $44 trillion in economic value, representing more than half of the world’s total GDP. Loss of nature therefore has far-reaching implications for businesses, influencing everything from operations to supply chains and market dynamics.

This highlights the need for businesses to act responsibly towards biodiversity and integrate sustainable and nature-positive practices throughout their value chains.

Businesses have a significant opportunity and responsibility to reverse nature loss

The stark reality is that biodiversity is declining at unprecedented rates due to human activities and climate change, with nearly 1 million species facing extinction globally. The Future of Nature and Business Report II highlights the need for a fundamental transformation across three socio-economic systems, which represent over a third of the global economy and provide up to two-thirds of all jobs. These systems are: food, land and ocean use; infrastructure and the built environment; and extractives and energy. Together they drive the threats which endanger almost 80% of the total threatened and near-threatened species.

According to the UK’s 2023 State of Nature report:

• Species across the UK have declined on average by 19% since 1970
• 16% of species in Great Britain are threatened with extinction
• 151 of 10,008 species assessed have already become extinct since 1500
• In Northern Ireland, 12% of assessed species were at risk of extinction, with Northern Ireland now being one of the most nature-depleted places in the world

Serious effort is therefore required to halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity.

Businesses need to start upskilling now in advance of mandatory biodiversity reporting

The Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), was agreed and adopted in 2022 during the United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP15) in Montreal, Canada, where a commitment was made to protect at least 30% of land, marine, and coastal areas, and restore at least 30% of degraded ecosystems by 2030 (“30 by 30”). The UK is now party to a new set of international biodiversity targets under this Convention.

Furthermore, following on from the release of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) in 2017 (framework for organisations to analyse, understand, and disclose climate-related financial information), the TNFD has developed a set of disclosure recommendations and guidance to encourage businesses to assess, report, and act on their nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks, and opportunities.

While reporting against the TNFD is currently voluntary, the adoption of a phased mandatory approach is expected. It is therefore advised that businesses start to upskill in biodiversity and understand the impacts of their operations and value chain on nature.

How can BITC NI help your organisation on its nature stewardship journey?

BITCNI, in partnership with Ulster Wildlife, is delivering the Business and Biodiversity Charter as a mechanism and framework to help businesses in Northern Ireland engage with biodiversity. The Charter guides businesses to develop their biodiversity initiatives and provides external recognition for the companies involved. It uses a staged approach to implementation and is applicable to all organisations, from microbusinesses to multi-national companies.

Fig. 1 Unit requirements of the four levels of the Charter

We have seen an uptick of businesses across Northern Ireland getting ahead of the curve by participating in the biodiversity charity, as seen below, and businesses like 2024 Nature and Biodiversity Award winner Encirc, and construction company GRAHAM are already taking inspiring action.

Fig. 2 Organisations that have taken part in the Charter to date.

Biodiversity Charter Success Stories

For some inspiration, check out the following case study on Encirc, which has taken part in the Charter and demonstrated commitments to promoting biodiversity:

Encirc and St Aidan’s High School join forces for biodiversity (bitcni.org.uk)

Members of Business in the Community can access the Integrating biodiversity into your workplace toolkit on MyBITCNI.