Businesses should be forced to disclose their impact on nature, more than 300 firms said in an open letter to world leaders published Wednesday ahead of United Nations talks on halting catastrophic biodiversity loss.
Consumer goods group Unilever, furniture maker IKEA and India’s Tata Steel were among the high-profile corporations calling for tougher measures to spur firms to take action amid growing concerns about the destruction of the natural world.
“We need governments worldwide to transform the rules of the economic game and business needs to act now,” said the Business for Nature Alliance.
This open letter was signed by approximately 330 companies with combined revenues of more than $1.5 trillion.
International efforts to protect the world’s natural life support systems, including air, food and water, will conclude in December in Canada. Negotiators are preparing a global framework for “living in harmony with nature” by 2050, with key benchmarks in 2030.
Businesses are beginning to report on their carbon emissions and climate impacts – although facing accusations of “greenwashing” – few firms detail biodiversity.
Businesses that signed the statement said they want clarity from policymakers.
“This statement shows broad support from major businesses for an ambitious global agreement for nature, with clear goals to drive collective trade and financing,” said André Hoffmann, Vice President of Roche Holdings.
“Political certainty will accelerate the necessary changes in our business model. We are ready to do everything in our power to transform nature, people and business into a thriving society.”
In March, a report by central banks found that financial institutions and businesses are underestimating the risk of biodiversity loss and destroying the natural assets they depend on.
The new statement calls on heads of state to sign up to a target of mandatory requirements for large firms to assess and disclose their impact and dependence on biodiversity by the end of this decade.
The task “will not be easy but it must be done,” the firms said, urging measures to ensure that UN goals aim to reduce negative impacts and encourage positive ones.
“The current rate of global economic activity is more than the planet can cope with,” said Steve Waygood, chief responsible investment officer at Aviva Investors, who signed the Nature statement for the business.
“If nature is a current account, we will be heavily overdrawn. This is bad for the environment and bad for long-term growth.”
Many hope that the UN agreement, when finalized, will be as ambitious in its goals to protect life on Earth as the Paris Agreement was for climate change – even though the United States is not a party to UN efforts to protect nature.
A landmark proposal is to protect 30 percent of forested land and oceans by 2030.
Another main focus of the talks is harmful subsidies for things like fossil fuels, agriculture and fishing that result in environmental destruction and can encourage unsustainable levels of production and consumption.
Business for Nature estimates these amounts to $1.8 trillion each year, or two percent of global gross domestic product.
The world failed to meet all previous targets on nature in the decade to 2020.