How Businesses Can Drive Urban Biodiversity

Recently, the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP 16) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was held under the theme, "Peace with Nature." One could translate this to a “live and let live” perspective towards the natural world. Biodiversity conservation can be seen as embodying this spirit, encompassing all living organisms, from individual species to entire ecosystems. Reflexively associated with wildlife reserves, biodiversity exists in many diverse settings like urban gardens, wetlands and even abandoned industrial areas.

Urban biodiversity offers numerous benefits, including improved air and water quality, flood control, climate change mitigation and recreational opportunities. These ecosystem services contribute significantly to the global economy and are valued at over $150 trillion annually. However, declining ecosystems due to land use changes, overexploitation, climate change, pollution and invasive species pose risks to businesses operating within these areas. Given their significant urban presence, businesses in India have the potential to lead urban biodiversity conservation efforts.

While corporations are becoming aware of their environmental impact, corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives by businesses remain largely focused on social causes and not the environment. The initiatives that do focus on the environment continue to support piecemeal solutions. This short-sighted approach to climate change, where solutions are proposed to solve surface-level problems, undermines the implementation of long-term solutions.

Given the current state of climate change and biodiversity loss, businesses must focus on adopting a comprehensive and strategic approach to their CSR programs. The current CSR contribution towards biodiversity in India is only about 3% of total CSR expenditures. It is even lower for urban biodiversity. There is a clear opportunity to enhance this area of contribution. The convening at COP16 also urged businesses and the financial sector to mainstream biodiversity in an inclusive manner across all sectors.

How Businesses Can Help Strengthen Urban Biodiversity

Businesses can play a critical role in advancing and protecting biodiversity. Below are some of the ways this can be done –

• Partner with experts
  One of the major challenges faced in biodiversity conservation is the lack of expertise within organizations to oversee solutions that go beyond basic tree plantation drives. By partnering with biodiversity and ecology experts, the proposed implementation can be scientifically informed and strategically planned to ensure a longer-term impact.




• Incorporate biodiversity into business practices
  Urban biodiversity efforts can go beyond the protection of existing biodiversity to the creation of more sustainable environments through green infrastructure practices. Businesses can invest in implementing measures such as green roofs and planting native vegetation to build climate resilience in their daily operations. Tata Consulting Services Ltd. has demonstrated this approach by transforming its 18 campuses into biologically diversified urban landscapes, home to over 453 species of flora and 164 species of fauna. They used biodiversity mapping and site-specific Biodiversity Action Plans to implement this.




• Connect with local community and stakeholders
  Businesses in urban areas are part of a larger society. Therefore, collaboration with local communities and organizations becomes essential for the success of conservation efforts. By partnering with local groups, businesses can develop expertise in supporting local conservation strategies. The RPG Foundation partnered with the Pune Municipal Corporation to transform a former garbage dump into the Udaan Biodiversity Park. The park now supports 296 species of flora and has generated local employment opportunities for gardeners, security guards and others.




• Foster a culture of conservation
  Employees are the backbone of any business and play a critical role in conservation efforts. Companies can engage employees by creating volunteering opportunities for conservation projects, offering training workshops on environmental responsibility and promoting eco-friendly practices within the workplace. Toyota Kirloskar Motor’s demonstrated this through their ‘Toyota Environment Month’. Dedicated to celebrating World Environment Day, this program encourages employees to participate in conservation activities throughout June, fostering a sense of shared responsibility for environmental protection.




• Fund operation and maintenance of projects
  CSR funding usually invests in one-time solutions such as tree plantation, which do not account for the long-term maintenance necessary for actual impact. This approach fails to recognize the importance of investing in the operation and maintenance of projects which maximize environmental benefits over the project life cycle. The implementation of more green infrastructure solutions can provide data on performance and maintenance costs to better quantify the benefits of such investments.

How Biodiversity Efforts Benefit Businesses

Businesses that champion biodiversity reap benefits such as a healthier and more productive workforce owing to cleaner air and water. Working toward environment conservation improves brand reputation as integrating sustainability practices attracts both talent and environmentally conscious customers. Another benefit includes reduced operational costs through sustainable water and energy use practices like integrating green infrastructure solutions.

In response to the current state of climate change, efforts for biodiversity conservation by businesses must gain momentum by shifting from a piecemeal approach to a long-term strategic approach. The adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) by countries around the globe sets a vision of a world living in harmony with nature by 2050. It also calls for urgent action to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. Businesses, with their significant impact on biodiversity, can bring about transformative change to meet the goals of vision 2050 by taking steps to mobilize resources and driving action for biodiversity conservation.

Complex natural ecosystems require a collaborative approach that connects different actors across different sectors. The onus is on all of us – businesses, communities and governments – to build trust in nature-based solutions, leverage technology and learn from traditional practices to protect and restore our urban ecosystems.