Centre for Nature and Climate

Introducing nature-positive solutions

Ensuring the preservation, restoration and sustainable management of nature is not only a moral obligation but also an economic necessity. We are facing interconnected challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation, food security and social inequality.

Addressing any of these crises demands comprehensive solutions that tackle them collectively. Beyond working toward distant net-zero goals and adhering to climate-financing pledges, businesses need to recognize the necessity to dedicate resources to the conservation and restoration of nature. Collaboration between public and private stakeholders is vital to making a significant difference in this area.

For example, blended finance (private capital and public funding) can encourage sustainable business models. Such models assign a monetary value to nature’s economic contribution, ensuring that natural capital is considered alongside physical, financial and human capital in feasibility studies, investment planning and so on.

Technology capital also has a major role to play. Industry 4.0 technologies such as data analytics, IoT and digital twins have the potential to improve the efficiency of business processes, thereby reducing the environmental impact of operations. Additionally, blockchain technology can help to enhance transparency and traceability across supply chains, giving trusted assurance to buyers and consumers.

As an example of what technology can do, we have built fully automated greenhouses in Japan which employ 5G-powered technology to control key variables like temperature and humidity. This intelligent farming innovation meets both business and sustainability objectives by improving yields while reducing energy waste.

Promoting responsible resource stewardship

About 95% of the world’s food supply relies on healthy soils, yet nearly a third of agricultural land globally is degraded, according to research conducted by the United Nations for the Global Land Outlook report. Erosion removes 1% of the world’s arable land per year. If current trends continue, 90% of global soils will be degraded by 2050. As a result, world food production could fall by 10% on average and by up to 50% in some areas. The need to secure soil health cannot be understated — healthy soil results in numerous benefits, including biodiversity restoration, water-cycle improvement and the transformation of food systems into a carbon sink (a natural method of storing and absorbing more carbon dioxide than they emit), while securing food for all.

We believe in creating an ecosystem in which everyone is aligned to a common shared goal. This requires working with businesses and governments and acknowledging the critical role that farmers play as custodians of the land.

Collaboration is a crucial starting point in working together to harmonize soil data resources. This paves the way for the adoption of new technologies, such as AI, that can help identify important insights from the troves of data that may otherwise be overlooked. By investing in and creating space for a learning exchange to take place, we can unlock new opportunities for soil health.

We are committed to supporting the development of regenerative agriculture and helping farmers to adopt innovation so that new technologies can be implemented at scale to the benefit of all.

We want to keep on transforming the way we operate to become a leader in sustainable practices, not just in our industry, but globally. Together, we can achieve our shared net-zero vision and support a more prosperous global society.