Global investors are increasingly aware of the impacts and risks associated with biodiversity loss and are ramping up engagements with companies to address this growing issue. Our research seeks to identify the degree to which companies address these concerns within their sustainability reporting.
The World Economic Forum has highlighted biodiversity loss as the third highest existential long-term risk to businesses. As investors are becoming increasingly aware and vocal on the topic of biodiversity, companies must seek to address these concerns in their reporting. In particular, companies should highlight how they address biodiversity-related risks and initiatives to help promote biodiversity within and beyond their business operations.
2022 2nd Edition
In the 2022 edition of the study, we take a deeper look at developing biodiversity reporting frameworks and how company reporting currently reflects upcoming standards. The research seeks to compare the level of company reporting with industry-level materiality and includes an analysis of the four pillars of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), as well as the potential next steps for companies' biodiversity strategies.
Key takeaways from the 2022 study:
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15 of the largest and most engagement-focused asset managers include biodiversity as an engagement priority for public companies.
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At this stage, almost 80% of assessed companies have weak disclosure across the four pillars of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) beta framework.
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Companies need to develop a biodiversity reporting strategy to identify disclosure gaps and elevate programs in line with market expectations
Read our study for more findings and guidance.
1st Edition
In our 2021 study, we uncover the extent to which companies are reporting on biodiversity and how they are addressing these issues. The study focuses on the sustainability disclosures of the top 50 largest companies in the US and the top 50 in Europe.
Key takeaways from the 2021 study:
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32% of large listed companies are disclosing on biodiversity initiatives within their business operations despite institutional investors managing $7tn in equity assets already considering this topic in their investment process.
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Both US & European companies underreport the topic of biodiversity, however, a clear regional divide exists. There is a clear gap between reporting expectations and quality.
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Companies most frequently report on external biodiversity-related projects than they do on taking internal action on biodiversity.
