Opinion | For high returns on investment, nature is a good bet

As world leaders chart a course to reignite global growth, they must not ignore the relationship between nature and the economy

In the years ahead, preserving biodiversity and ecosystems could be the key to unlocking an estimated US$10 trillion annually in new opportunities

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A boat, with marine protected areas officials, moves in the Mediterranean Sea marine natural reserve of Rosh Hanikra in northern Israel on October 26. Half of world GDP is generated by sectors – from agriculture and lumber to fisheries – that are moderately or highly dependent on ecosystems. These vital natural assets shouldn’t be compromised. Photo: AP

Published: 1:40pm, 13 Dec 2022Updated: 1:51pm, 13 Dec 2022

The mega-challenges engulfing the world today – from Covid-19 to climate change – have highlighted the interdependencies between people, planet and the economy. As we chart a course to reignite global growth and drive green, resilient and inclusive development, we must not ignore these interlinkages.

Nature – meaning biodiversity and the services that healthy ecosystems provide – is central to this endeavour, especially in developing countries, where poor people in rural areas tend to rely heavily on nature’s services and are the most vulnerable to its depletion.

As the international community gathers in Montreal for COP15, the United Nations summit on biodiversity, we must reaffirm the necessity of investing in nature, in tandem with climate action. After all, half of world GDP is generated by sectors – from agriculture and lumber to fisheries – that are moderately or highly dependent on ecosystems, and two-thirds of food crops rely at least partly on animal pollination.

But these vital natural assets are increasingly compromised. Nearly 1 million species of plants and animals are on the brink of extinction, and 60-70 per cent of the world’s ecosystems are being degraded faster than they can recover.

According to World Bank estimates, low-income countries could lose around 10 per cent of their gross domestic product annually by 2030, even if ecosystem collapse is confined to just a few services, such as wild pollination, food from marine fisheries and timber from native forests.

Nature loss is also closely connected to climate change. We now know that the two crises are reinforcing each other, and with potentially dire implications for the health of ecosystems globally. To fight climate change, we need strong, vibrant forests and healthy oceans to absorb carbon dioxide; but climate change itself is jeopardising these systems.

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