We were proud to sponsor Environmental Finance’s fifth annual 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗔 and to connect with over 400 peers to discuss the key issues related to natural capital investment, regulation and policy, tackling data challenges and more.

Our VP and Head of Biodiversity Products, Thomas Moran, helped kick off the day by moderating a thought-provoking panel on driving momentum for the next phase of TNFD. This was followed by a packed day of sessions on topics as wide-ranging as how to value nature, the opportunities and challenges for the biodiversity credit market, setting science-based targets for nature, and how to best integrate natural capital into investment frameworks.

What was clear from our conversations at the event was that financial institutions and businesses are increasingly recognising natural capital/biodiversity as a key strategic priority, and the interest in consistent, high-quality, and location-centric data is nascent – especially in the context of emerging standards and reporting frameworks like TNFD.

Read the key takeaways of our team from the day:

Thomas Moran, VP and Head of Biodiversity Products:

“The call to action from the TNFD is simple: Just Get Started! Don’t wait for the perfect process, or for the rest of your sector to fall in line. Among the benefits of moving early: establish leadership on nature issues; receive feedback on draft disclosures; build processes suited to your organisation rather than adapting to other precedents; and build momentum for nature-related disclosures by demonstrating “what good looks like”.”

Mahima Sukhdev, SVP, Commercial Development:

“Regulation is driving Natural Capital impacts to the forefront of the finance industry. And, voluntary efforts like PBAF, SBTi and TNFD are supporting as guiding forces, as well as differentiators for the market leaders. We heard from Asset Owners, Asset Managers, Banks and Governments that underlying market economics, opportunities and risk management are fundamentally driving natural capital to the top of the organisational agenda.“

Sam King, SVP, Corporate:

“The event was a packed house – a lot has changed in 12 months. Not just the size of the community, but the depth of discussion too. We heard from all areas of the finance community discussing everything from valuing natural capital investment opportunities to measuring and mitigating biodiversity risk.” 

Snehal Bhosale, Investor Services:

“The evolving environmental reporting landscape underscores the interdependence of climate and nature. Despite facing challenges and navigating through chaos, there’s a noticeable surge in organisations embracing frameworks like TNFD, signifying a proactive approach to tackle complexity.

Asset managers are rapidly embracing reporting on nature metrics, recognising the interconnectedness of climate and nature. Despite initial uncertainty, they are finding actionable points amidst the chaos, signalling a promising start towards long-term impact.

The journey towards measuring corporate impacts on climate change, biodiversity, and nature is gaining momentum. Over the past two years, corporate disclosures have expanded exponentially & go beyond carbon to encompass metrics like water consumption and air pollution, reflecting a growing commitment to environmental stewardship.“

Aromi Salot, Investor Services

“Trees are the OG Direct Air Capture Systems” – Jeff Briggs, New Forests. We cannot understate more how important nature is to us, our businesses and livelihoods. As we only internalise what we measure, the conference has highlighted the importance of valuing the services nature provides to us. The EF event has been truly inspiring in the sense that it has brought together financial institutions leading the charge on reducing impact on nature and aiming to bring out a “net positive” impact on biodiversity and nature through their investments. 

It is also important to have cross-disciplinary collaboration to ensure that FIs and corporates are able to advise on and seamlessly implement the path chartered by the alphabet soup of the ever-evolving regulatory landscape.“

Thanks again to Environmental Finance for hosting us and we look forward to continuing these important discussions in the weeks and months to come!

In the meantime learn more about our Biodiversity Solutions here.