Biodiversity and Natural Capital – Overview of French players
As part of its mission to make green and sustainable finance the driving force behind the development of the Paris financial center, and to make it a benchmark financial center for these issues, Finance for Tomorrow has set up a working group on natural capital and biodiversity. The group’s objectives are manifold: it aims to coordinate players, amplify their ambitions and promote their expertise internationally.
The more our ecosystems disappear, the more the concept of biodiversity and its preservation take on tangible meaning. In October 2018, WWF published a report revealing that over the past 40 years, we have lost 60% of the Earth’s wild animal populations. Around the world, we are observing the decline of ecosystems. Faced with these prospects, there is growing concern: how much longer can we count on a healthy and prosperous environment?
Human activities are responsible for the destruction of habitats and the depletion of natural resources. However, our economies are based on natural capital, and ecosystems provide almost $100 billion worth of economic services free of charge every year. Every good we produce and consume is the result of the transformation of a natural product – no matter how complex the supply chain. Healthy ecosystems are also essential to absorb our carbon emissions and limit global warming. Given
the scale of the challenges, researchers and policy-makers have realized that economic and financial players have a real impact on biodiversity, and can take positive initiatives. Today, we have the technical knowledge to produce responsibly and restore degraded ecosystems. What we lack is the economic logic and financial methodology to deploy these techniques on a large scale and build sustainable supply chains on an international scale.
Experts are now witnessing a process that has already been observed in the renewable energies sector: creating an asset class is the fruit of a collective effort, which requires a common analytical foundation within a risk/return pairing. With the Finance for Tomorrow working group dedicated to natural capital and biodiversity, we have drawn up this map of French players to support the emergence of this asset class, which represents a new frontier for the financial sector. In this way, we hope to help move the process forward and highlight the pioneering expertise of French players.
France can take biodiversity issues to the international stage. Over the next few years, we will be hosting major international events on the subject. Building on our experience with the Paris Agreement, and as we assume the Presidency of the G7 in 2019, we can prepare for the Conference of the Parties on Biodiversity in China (COP 15) to create the political momentum needed to preserve our shared environment.
As Chairman of Finance for Tomorrow and a committed investor in sustainable infrastructure and natural capital, I hope that this collective work will improve the way we invest in the resources that Nature offers us.
Philippe Zaouati,
Chairman of Finance for Tomorrow & Chief Executive Officer of Mirova