Hello! My name is Akil. Welcome to this course on biodiversity.
We will see why biodiversity is key to your business. . .
how to measure your impact on it. . .
and how to integrate it into your strategy and your sites. Let's start with the why. You may not necessarily realise it, but your business both depends on biodiversity and has an impact on it.
If your company doesn't take this into account, it exposes itself to significant risks. First of all, here's a quick reminder of the definition. Biodiversity is the variety of life on Earth at all its levels.
It is the genetic difference between two individuals of the same species or the difference between animals or plant species. But it also includes different ecosystems like tropical forests or oceans. All of this is biodiversity.
The problem is that this biodiversity is collapsing at an alarming rate. We are experiencing one of the greatest mass extinctions the Earth has ever known. For example, the planet has lost two thirds of its vertebrates in 50 years!
Two thirds, can you imagine that? Unlike previous ones, this mass extinction is not due to natural phenomena like volcanic eruptions or meteorites. The root cause?
Humans. Or more specifically, their recent economic activities. Intensive agriculture, mass tourism, sprawling buildings.
. . The impacts of our production methods directly threaten biodiversity.
So businesses have a large share of the responsibility for this crisis. Now, you might say that's a shame, but it won't affect the business. Well, it will because their businesses depend on biodiversity.
In 2019, the chairman of the IPBES, the International Expert Group on Biodiversity, said: "The health of ecosystems is deteriorating more rapidly than ever. We are eroding the very foundations of our economies and livelihoods. " Let me explain this to you with.
. . this knitted jumper, it's stitches are all linked.
But if you cut a thread, the other stitches start to unravel. Little by little, a single small cut ends up ruining the jumper. It's the same for biodiversity.
It's a great balance of relationships. Woven in between different species and ecosystems. We humans are part of this balance.
Each imbalance has a knock-on effect on the rest of biodiversity and in turn on economic activity. Let's take an example. Like other insects and animals, this bee carries pollen from plant to plant, letting them reproduce.
This is pollination. Bees are not the only pollinators either. Without them, we risk losing almost two thirds of the plant species we grow today.
This directly threatens what's on our plates. In the same way, our medicines, the water we drink and the air we breathe. It all depends on biodiversity.
Unhealthy biodiversity means our human activities and our economy with them will not be viable. So you can see how a collapse in biodiversity means big risks for businesses. These risks take different forms.
Natural environment destruction can directly disrupt your operations. In the Philippines, in the Agno river basin, there has been huge deforestation. This meant the tree roots no longer held the soil.
Erosion was the result: propelled by rain and wind, the soil silted up the river. A hydroelectric power station installed downstream suffered the consequences because of the silting. It was forced to operate intermittently throughout the 1990s.
It then had to close completely for over ten years. But biodiversity destruction can also entail risks on a much larger scale. For example, intensive livestock farming, trading in wild species, destroying natural environments.
All these factors encourage virus transmission between species, including humans. Weakening biodiversity therefore increases the risk of pandemics with potentially greater future damage than COVID 19. And we all remember its effects on the global economy.
Finally, there is yet another reason to act now to protect biodiversity. Market expectations and regulatory developments All over the world, laws and methodological frameworks are being developed based on the links between business and biodiversity. In addition, investors are also paying more attention to these issues.
In short, the entire economic landscape is changing, so you need to anticipate this! So yes, acting to protect biodiversity will need resources, dedicated time and very often a re-think of business models. The good news is that if you started to take climate action, you've probably already done your first bit for biodiversity!
In return, by preserving biodiversity, you will have a positive impact on the climate. See you in a few minutes, to look at it all together!
