5 Tips to Secure Conservation Finance
28 February 2024// Resources // Article
Almost $7T of finance each year supports activities that directly harm nature. Meanwhile there is an annual $830B nature finance deficit for nature restoration. Currently, over 80 per cent of the capital allocated to nature-based solutions comes from governments— clearly, briding the nature finance gap requires the private sector to step up. Fortunately, nature and biodiversity targets have seen a significant uptake by the private sector in recent years. We hope these resources help you capitalize on this momentum to secure your nature project finance.
- Approach companies with nature targets: thousands of companies collectively managing hundreds of trillions of dollars in assets have set biodiversity and nature targets or pledges. We’ve compiled some of the leading frameworks and standards (hyperlinked to a list of their members), which will give you an indication of which organizations you can approach for either philanthropic, or nature investment capital.
- Coalition for Private Investment in Conservation (CPIC)
- Natural Capital Investment Alliance (NCIA)
- Finance for Biodiversity Pledge
- Task Force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD)
- 1T.org Pledges
- 1T.org Alliance
- Nature Action 100
- Act4Nature
- Business for Nature (BfN)
- Business & Biodiversity
- Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB) Nature Target Setting Working Group
- Science based Targets Network SBTN
- Capitals Coalition
If you’d like to be notified when we release our comprehensive, searchable database of ‘Who’s Financing Nature’ —including each company’s targeted regions, ecosystem preferences, financial commitments, and types of funding—sign up to our complimentary newsletter.
2. Align with corporate and investor frameworks: beyond the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), many of the frameworks mentioned have specific targets for nature restoration and investment. These include:
- Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB)
- Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)
- Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD)
- International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB)
- Science Based Targets Network (SBTN)
Download our reporting template here.
3. Position Your Project’s Ecological Benefits the Corporate Way: there is a language gap between ecologists and corporates. To bridge the gap, we have mapped ecosystem services and sub-services—using the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology and The Economics of Ecosystems & Biodiversity (TEEB)—to their potential in reducing climate and nature-related risks or contributing to opportunities, in alignment with the respective Task Forces on Climate and Nature-related Financial Disclosures. Explore our Taxonomy to communicate your project’s potential impact in a more business and investor-friendly way.
4. Use Symbaiosys’s NatCap Calculator: use our natural capital valuation calculator, which provides the average USD value of ecosystem services in alignment with our Taxonomy, based on around 10,000 values extracted from scientific ecosystem service valuation studies. For access, register for a free account.
5. Submit your Projects to our Database: gain visibility from institutional investors and companies seeking high integrity nature projects to fund or finance, register for a free Symbaiosys account.
If you’d like to see more useful content and resources like this, please leave us a comment or suggestion.
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