The Science Based Targets Network
(SBTN) has launched the first science-based targets for nature — aiming to
setting the global standard for measurable corporate action to protect nature.
These targets are introduced against the backdrop of scientific consensus that
limiting global warming to 1.5°C cannot be achieved without halting and
reversing nature
loss.
Nature absorbs approximately half of the planet’s carbon emissions a year; and
with recent research indicating that more than half of global GDP is moderately
or highly dependent on
nature,
the business case for taking action to address nature and climate together has
never been clearer.
As awareness of the critical role of biodiversity — and the enormous risks to
business and the
economy
of continuing to destroy it — have grown in recent years, a number of
tools
and
technologies
have emerged aimed at helping companies understand and address their impacts on
the natural world; but there’s yet to be any standardization. SBTN’s new
science-based targets for nature build on global momentum on climate — with over
2,600 companies already setting science-based targets for climate through the
Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). The much-needed targets on
nature — which SBTN began developing in
2020
— complement existing climate targets by allowing companies to take holistic
action to address their impacts in the face of mounting environmental and social
crises.
To achieve a balance between scientific rigor and feasibility, over 200
organizations have already helped road-test SBTN’s initial methods, tools and
guidance including 115 companies; the majority of whom participate in SBTN’s
Corporate Engagement Program — representing 20+ sectors in 25 countries with
over $4 trillion in market cap.
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As SBTN Executive Director Erin
Billman explains: “We are in
the midst of interconnected crises. We cannot limit global warming to 1.5°C
without addressing nature loss; and we cannot halt and reverse nature loss
without a stable climate. Crucially, we know we can’t address either without
putting people and equity at the center.
“Building science-based targets for nature into business strategies will not
only be vital to helping secure a healthy, resilient and equitable world, but to
driving long-term resilience for businesses. By understanding and addressing
their environmental impacts, companies can help mitigate supply chain
disruptions, get ahead of regulatory compliance, and increase business value
through access to capital and competitive advantage. We are asking businesses to
seize the opportunity now and to start assessing their impact on Earth’s finite
resources and prepare to set the first science-based targets for nature.”
The new science-based targets for nature come in the footsteps of the
Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity
Framework
— what’s being called a ‘Paris Agreement for nature’ — which was finalized and
agreed at COP15 in December. The targets provide a key mechanism for
companies to operationalize this global deal for nature — including addressing
Target 15, which focuses on the role of business in managing and disclosing
their impact on nature.
With the launch of the new science-based targets for nature, the SBTN is
providing guidance for all companies to holistically assess and prioritize their
environmental impacts and to prepare to set science-based targets — beginning
with freshwater and land. In doing so, companies will improve the resilience of
their business strategies and mitigate risk, while also directly supporting
biodiversity — contributing to the preservation and restoration of natural
ecosystems.
An initial group of 17 global companies — AB InBev, Alpro (part of
Danone), Bel, Carrefour, Corbion, GSK, H&M Group,
Hindustan Zinc Limited, Holcim Group, Kering and L’Occitane
Group (which in December joined forces to launch a Climate Fund for
Nature),
LVMH, Nestlé, Neste Corporation, Suntory Holdings Limited,
Tesco and UPM — selected for their readiness and applicability, are
already preparing to set their first science-based targets for nature this year.
An initial pilot will be undertaken with this group of companies, with a full
roll-out to all companies in early 2024.
“L’Occitane Group has set itself the ambition to contribute to a
nature-positive future. To do so, we must rely on science to ensure that our
actions match our impacts and nature’s needs,” says Adrien
Geiger, Group Chief
Sustainability Officer at L’Occitane Group, which in 2021 set forth a
strategy to be nature-positive by
2025.
“Joining the SBTN Initial Target Validation Pilot is a new step towards our
objective to halt biodiversity loss and understand how to make business
compatible with planetary boundaries.”
Drawing on the best available science and global societal goals
The new targets draw on today’s best available science and includes
collaboration with the Earth Commission on the upcoming safe and just Earth
System
Boundaries.
They are also aligned with existing global goals on climate, nature and
development — including the Global Biodiversity Framework, the Paris Agreement
and the UN Sustainable Development
Goals.
“Companies now have clear guidance and methodologies to set science-based
targets for climate and nature,” says Johan
Rockström, Co-chair of the Earth
Commission. “The first science-based targets for nature align with the new
science assessment The Earth Commission is about to publish on defining a safe
and just space for humanity. I applaud the courage of the 17 pilot companies who
are setting the first targets — because just like climate, it won’t be easy. We
can all learn from their experiences, and we must. The future of business
depends on it.”
A multi-year plan to establish holistic targets for nature
This first release forms part of a multi-year plan to provide companies of all
sizes and sectors with comprehensive science-based targets for nature, which
will increase in scope — including expanded freshwater and land targets, further
coverage of biodiversity, and ocean targets. In later releases, SBTN will also
issue guidance to companies on target implementation and tracking progress. The
first target validation for companies outside of the pilot is aimed to begin in
early 2024.
“Corporate climate-action initiatives must collaborate to provide companies with
clear, best practice guidance from end to end — emissions to nature, national
regulation to local engagement and everything in between — so businesses can
take an integrated and thorough approach to tackling the biggest threat humanity
has ever faced,” says SBTi CEO Luiz
Amaral. “I am thrilled that —
alongside science-based emission-reduction targets — companies can now have
additional, complementary and fully aligned guidance on nature. I look forward
to continue working to bring the ecosystem together.”
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published May 31, 2023 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST