Biodiversity indicators are commonly used to quantify impacts, but many are being developed to also measure dependencies, where hidden risks and opportunities often present themselves. Therefore, credible measurement approaches, including biodiversity ‘indicators’ and assessment frameworks, can aid in guiding and tracking performance regarding biodiversity management.
A broad landscape of credible biodiversity measurement approaches, indicators and frameworks is now available for both businesses and financial institutions, some of which are already being used to measure corporate performance. Businesses can use these to track performance against corporate commitments on biodiversity and global targets defined by the international sustainability policy agenda.
Despite these recent developments, current corporate reporting practices on biodiversity are limited and there is a real need to scale uptake. Several initiatives are aiming to increase clarity on how businesses should be measuring and reporting their performance. Through uptake of biodiversity indicators, businesses will gain an improved understanding of their impacts and dependencies on biodiversity, which can be reported to stakeholders. This will support improved management of biodiversity impacts and allow businesses to demonstrate their contributions to global efforts to halt the current biodiversity crisis.