Biodiversity: Business, academia, global bodies must team up

IN the course of Earth's history, ecosystems and species have had to adapt to changes in the world's climate. But rapid climate change may make it more difficult for ecosystems to adapt, so that biological diversity is directly affected. The loss of biodiversity and healthy ecosystems in turn contributes to accelerating climate change. We can see the results of this in our everyday lives: natural disasters, uninhabitable areas, climate-induced migrations, floods, dying forests, overfishing, and so on.

Biodiversity and climate change are closely interlinked, as the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) recognise. SDG 6 ("clean water and sanitation"), SDG 13 ("climate action"), SDG 14 ("life below water") and SDG 15 ("life on land") all have spillover effects for the biosphere.

The bodies addressing these problems also have to interact. For example, the Task force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and the Task force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) have to work together.