Nature comes under the global spotlight this month. The Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity, a process that is mirroring the COP Climate meetings, will resume discussions to progress global protections and implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, designed to halt and reverse nature loss.

Nature risks for business

The implications of the framework’s targets are clear: nature and biodiversity targets set at a national and international level have knock-on effects to business-as-usual. Astute business organisations exposed to nature risk, across the agriculture, food, fashion and pharmaceutical industries, already recognise the business case for nature, and are engaging with nature risk in their value chain.

Understanding the financial risks of their dependencies on natural resources, many of the global organisations we work with are investing in nature-based solutions. An example of this might be investments in regenerative agricultural practices that restore soil health and bring greater resilience to farming communities. Investment in nature-based solutions can have the co-benefit of strengthening an organisation’s supply chain.

Investor awareness is increasing

Increasing numbers of companies are disclosing transition plans designed to decarbonise their operations. There is growing awareness among investors and business leaders of the economic risks posed by biodiversity loss and emerging opportunities in a nature-positive economy. Both voluntary (TNFD) and mandatory reporting frameworks, including Europe’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), ask organisations to consider and act on their impacts and dependencies on nature and how their activities bring financial risks to themselves and impact the environment.

Many of the global organisations we work with are already preparing to publicly disclose their nature-related risks, opportunities, dependencies and impacts. CSRD requires large, listed companies to disclose, starting from 2026 based on 2025 information, and mandates detailed reporting on sustainability matters related to water, land-use, biodiversity, human rights, labour rights and circular business models.

The climate-nature nexus

It makes good business sense to build on this momentum by integrating nature into financially-quantified transition planning where it’s possible to do so. We know nature-based solutions are required to achieve a range of decarbonisation goals and there is business value to be gained from treating climate and nature as an integrated problem that requires an integrated solution – one that Risilience calls Sustainability Intelligence.

Nature as business imperative

There are challenges to addressing and managing nature-related risks that companies must grapple with, including the large quantity and diversity of metrics that nature and biodiversity risks sometimes require to understand current states, and measure progress against goals. However, the topic cannot be ignored and the diversity of metrics offers a range of opportunities to begin making progress in this area.

We are in the middle of a biodiversity collapse and highly-exposed companies not engaging strategically with their business’ relationship to nature will cease to be profitable entities.

Organisations must look to the future and strategically plan for, and mitigate against, nature-related risks, including increased cost for using water where it is scarce, higher penalties for pollution, regulatory taxation for deforestation and land-use change. All can disrupt businesses and impact the bottom line.

Take steps to prepare for competitive advantage 

While not as advanced as climate, nature is moving fast up the business agenda and there are steps all organisations can take to start, or progress, their nature journey, now.

  • Perform a nature inventory: understanding where your company stands in relation to its dependencies and impacts on nature is a good place to start.
  • Identify your objectives: establish how sustainability serves the organisation’s business interests and align sustainability with the business strategy.
  • Financially quantify transition plans: surface the resources and the support your organisation might need to mitigate nature-related risks and realise nature-related opportunities.

These actions equally apply to an organisation’s climate-related strategy highlighting the confluence of climate and nature and the efficiency to be gained from taking a dual approach.

Harvest the business benefits

There are business benefits to taking a dual approach to climate and nature. Identifying areas in an organisation’s transition plan, where climate and nature activities and frameworks can align, opens opportunity for both efficiencies and greater impact. This approach can help to build the sustainability business case internally, surfacing initiatives for cross-company exploration and establishing priorities for potential integration with business strategy.

Organisations left on the back foot, when it comes to nature, stand to miss out. Increasing consumer awareness of climate and nature is seeing purchasing power supporting more sustainable products and services, opening opportunities for new revenue streams that can lead to bottom-line growth.

Taking action, now, will harvest results and build momentum towards becoming a profitably sustainable business. Being proactively part of the nascent nature conversation offers companies a place at the table to share their experience and advance industry perspective. Organisations prepared for what’s to come will be best positioned to gain competitive advantage and thrive in the nature-positive future.

• Mary Goldman will be speaking as part of the panel discussing ‘How to Integrate Biodiversity into Decarbonization Plans’ on Tuesday 11th February, 1.30pm-2.30pm MST, at GreenBiz25, Phoenix, Arizona, US.

• Read more about the opportunities for business at the climate and nature nexus. Download our reports: Sustainability Intelligence: connecting organisations to Business 2.0 and Climate and nature nexus: the business value of a dual approach to sustainability.