EcoAct - Biodiversity Footprinting and Accounting Services
In 2019, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) published an inspiring report on the state of biodiversity in the world. It acknowledged that nature and its vital contributions to human society are being deteriorated at a global level due to direct (land use, exploitation, pollution, etc.) and indirect (demographic changes, conflicts, epidemics, etc.) human pressures on the environment.
Like climate change, biodiversity decline will have devastating effects for people and for businesses. There has been growing awareness of this topic for several years now, and has encouraged private and public actors to commit to reducing their impact on nature.
This is why EcoAct has gotten involved in several international initiatives. Since 2021, we are a member of the B4B+ Club (Business for Biodiversity Positive) of the CDC Biodiversity, which aims to develop a methodology aligned with all current initiatives (SBTN, CDP, Align, TNFD…) for measuring companies’ biodiversity footprint: the Global Biodiversity Score (GBS).
We have also joined the European research project CircHive, which aims to standardise biodiversity footprinting and natural capital accounting for public and private actors. With this 5-year project and the support of European experts, EcoAct will be further able to provide informed expertise to our clients. We are thus able to help companies and territories calculate their biodiversity footprint and develop an appropriate impact reduction strategy.
At the forefront of the latest news regarding regulatory and voluntary frameworks (Kunming-Montreal Agreement of the COP 15 for biodiversity, EU taxonomy, TNFD, CDP, etc.), our team of biodiversity experts is equipped to understand your specific needs, and to adapt and anticipate any risks to your activity related to the decline of nature.
How we can help you understand and tackle biodiversity issues
We can help any organisation at different steps of their biodiversity strategy to understand their impact, assess the risks related to nature dependence, and carry out adaptation and mitigation actions.
Awareness session: Biodiversity MuralTo help organisations get familiar with biodiversity, we can provide a playful and collaborative awareness-raising workshop: the “Biodiversity Mural”.
Based on the same principle as the “Climate Mural”, this workshop helps participants understand the origins of the decline in biodiversity, as well as the consequences for humans and ecosystems.
As the game progresses, our facilitators guide the participants and help them propose potential solutions adapted to their company.
Exploration: Risk and opportunity assessmentHere we analyse the risks associated with potential impacts and dependencies, and identify mitigation opportunities.
Requiring less detailed measurement, this assessment provides broad qualitative results and allows for prioritisation. To prioritise efforts and attention, organisations should focus on the activities that are most relevant regarding their associated impacts and dependencies.
In addition to its business value, EcoAct uses the concept of “double materiality” to consider the societal value of biodiversity. This concept provides an in-depth view of the relationship between an organisation, biodiversity, and ecosystem services as well as a complete understanding of potential risks and opportunities.
Evaluation: Measuring your biodiversity footprintThis step measures your organisation’s contribution to pressures on biodiversity while highlighting strategic actions to better manage its impacts.
Although there is no official standard on methods and tools, the Global Biodiversity Score (GBS) is currently the most suitable tool for meeting existing or developing requirements.
Throughout the supply chain (analysis of all 3 scopes), the GBS analyses the organisation’s impacts on biodiversity by modelling pressures affecting ecosystems. The tool considers static impacts (negative impact accumulation) and dynamic impacts (one-off positive or negative influences).
The biodiversity footprint assessment includes 4 steps: scope definition, data collection, quantitative and qualitative impact analysis, and finally, interpretation of the results using sectoral benchmarks from the CDC Biodiversity and reporting.
Defining the action plan to preserve ecosystems and limit impactGoing beyond footprint measurement and dependency analysis, EcoAct helps develop targets to both reduce negative impacts and increase positive impacts, considering the links between biodiversity, climate, and sustainability. These potential mitigation measures (including positive biodiversity measures) can be adapted as needed: implemented at an existing site/project/product or integrated into the design or construction of a new site/project/product.
Reducing negative impacts can be translated into different actions such as sourcing raw materials from managed ecosystems to maintain or enhance biodiversity, addressing direct sources of pollution, limiting the construction of new buildings or infrastructure, etc.
We also encourage all organisations to contribute to positive actions such as regenerating damaged ecosystems, investing in nature-based solutions with biodiversity co-benefits, etc.
In addition, the action plan should include monitoring of biodiversity indicators, assessing and demonstrating progress towards the target, participation in national or international working groups, employee training on biodiversity issues, effective communication, and transparency on strategy and action.
Reporting: Support for CDP biodiversity questionsIn 2023, CDP, one of the most recognised reporting frameworks for investors, added 8 mandatory questions on biodiversity to its climate change questionnaire.
These questions are aligned with the GBS methodology and the latest IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) recommendations.
At EcoAct, we encourage our clients to get ahead of the regulation by working now to reduce their environmental footprint. CDP provides a snapshot of each company’s progress and best practices for achieving the highest score.