Karina Mereuta, Manager, Nature Action at WBCSD
A-Track has been creating opportunities for businesses to share and discuss the challenges they face in scaling nature-positive action. We surveyed 84 companies to understand their challenges, gather insights, and uncover opportunities to scale nature-positive action. In parallel, we brought together the broader knowledge community to explore how we can collectively support businesses in advancing their contributions to halting and reversing nature loss.
Next, we’re creating a dedicated space for businesses to share experiences and engage directly with A-Track experts on how to accelerate progress and roll-out nature across the organisation.
Key Takeaways
- Businesses face real barriers such as complexity, working in silos and a lack of resources when scaling nature positive action.
- Through a Needs Assessment Survey and an online event, A-Track has identified the most raised barriers businesses face.
- A-Track is creating resources, events and research to help businesses overcome these barriers.
What businesses have been telling us
Here are five major barriers businesses are telling us about —and how they can be overcome.
1. Awareness
Many companies still struggle to grasp the importance of nature for business resilience. Providing businesses with compelling, sector-specific evidence and case studies can help them recognise how nature underpins their operations. Natural capital assessment and accounting can also help to bridge this gap by providing tangible data on dependencies and impacts, helping companies quantify nature’s value and prioritise actions.
2. Complexity
It’s easy for businesses to feel lost in a maze of guidelines and tools while also struggling to keep up with rapidly changing voluntary and mandatory disclosure requirements. Businesses often struggle to understand evolving requirements or identify the most appropriate tools and methods for their context. Businesses need an appropriate roadmap of tools and methods as well as a simplification of compliance by aligning internal assessments with regulatory requirements.
3. Resources
Companies often lack dedicated staff, budget, or time to develop nature strategies. A strong business case demonstrating nature’s value is key to securing internal investment. Natural capital assessment and accounting can provide the data-driven insights needed to develop a compelling business case.
4. Silos
Many sustainability teams experience barriers engaging with their finance, procurement, and operations teams. Common metrics, consumer support and senior leadership buy-in can all help drive effective internal communication. Senior leadership can play a key role in breaking down silos and ensuring nature strategies are designed with departments beyond the sustainability team; almost one-third (31%) of respondents to our Needs Assessment Survey identified the board and senior management as key players in advancing their company’s nature-positive journey.
5. Adaptation
One-size-fits-all approaches are not sufficient. Businesses operate across different regions, sectors and languages. There’s an urgent need to make existing frameworks and methods accessible to all.
Next steps
The challenges businesses face are real, but so are the opportunities. Listening is the first step of A-Track’s journey to close knowledge gaps, simplify processes, and provide the right tools to help companies take meaningful action. By working together, we can overcome barriers and unlock nature-positive business opportunities.
To find out more about what businesses are saying, read the summary of our needs assessment survey.