News and Analysis • Volume 8 • Number 6 • 4th April 2008
Business And Biodiversity Protectors Converge
In a new report, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Shell International find that protection of biodiversity and promotion of business can be complementary. The report, entitled ‘Building Biodiversity Business’, proposes a market-based solution to biodiversity loss and suggests that business will ensure environmental protection only if it can be made profitable. The authors identify numerous pro-biodiversity business opportunities that can generate positive financial returns as well as real biodiversity benefits. Examples include sustainable timber, ecotourism, organic agriculture, and climate mitigation services, such as the protection of forests and wetlands to absorb carbon dioxide. These commodities and services are internationally traded, and can give developing countries the opportunity to take advantage of growing markets for environmentally friendly products in the North.
Bioprospecting, the search for new compounds, genes and organisms in the wild, is also a biodiversity business on the rise and could see major trade possibilities for export to the North from regions in the South with high levels of biodiversity. However, the report highlights the need for policy reforms, technical assistance and innovative financing tools in order to attract business growth that protects biodiversity. Policy reforms include increasing the commercial rewards for conserving biodiversity, increasing penalties for biodiversity loss and improving information on the biodiversity performance of business.
Additional resources
The report, Building Biodiversity Business, can be read in full at http://www.iucn.org/dbtw-wpd/edocs/2008-002.pdf
ICTSD reporting.