Nature Action 100+: Changing/Greening Investor Behavior to Protect Ecosystems and Biodiversity

Client

World Bank Group, Finance, Competitiveness & Innovation

Advisor(s)


Semester

Spring 2021

Final Report

View Final Report (PDF)

Nature and biodiversity are relatively new considerations for financial markets. With few existing conventions for risk evaluation and metrics, and limited regulatory and policy consensus on this topic, adoption of biodiversity considerations as part of investing has been slow. This Capstone project aimed to reflect on the role of the financial sector in managing biodiversity risks and engaging with the companies in which they invest to do the same. Additionally, this report provided a framework for establishing a Nature Action 100+ effort and focused on sectors with significant financial assets and countries where nature is being compromised in unsustainable ways. This report consisted of three parts:

  • Part I: Presented a case study on the Climate Action 100+ Initiative, including its inception, strengths, and weaknesses, to inform the development of a future Nature Action 100+.
  • Part II: Outlined a framework for a potential Nature Action 100+, including goals for the initiative, an analysis of how Nature Action 100+ should differ from or connect to Climate Action 100+, and suggestions for practical implementation of the initiative.
  • Part III: Proposed Nature Action 100+ member companies using a top-down, sectoral based approach to identify the largest sectors and sub-industries associated with natural capital dependency and impacts. This list of sub-industries and the list of respective companies can be used to identify high priority sectors for biodiversity and natural capital risks and biodiversity target setting.

To learn more on how the Capstone team worked with the World Bank to create a model for Nature 100, see: