+ Business & Biodiversity in Ireland Hannah Hamilton - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

+ Business & Biodiversity in Ireland Hannah Hamilton @NatCap_Irl / @BITCireland / @TheRiverField

+ My four hats! All-island initiative • established by National Biodiversity Data Leading the conversation on natural • Centre & Trinity capital in Ireland College Dublin 450+ individual members • Business • • Seeking to influence policy and engagement engage business programme Postgraduate • • Ireland’s network research on for responsible Corporate business Biodiversity 80 multinational, • Governance semi state, large Investigating • Irish companies drivers of voluntary on-site engagement

+ Our starting point …  2014: Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation launched the National Plan on CSR, which included a call for companies to have ‘respect for biodiversity’ ?

+ 2014: BITCI’s Environment Review  Business in the Community Ireland’s 2014 ‘Environment Review’ found that biodiversity is the environmental aspect on which Irish companies do the least  This led to a two-year project to put biodiversity on the corporate agenda in Ireland  Challenges in designing the project:  what IS biodiversity?  easy actions, easy wins  urban/rural/industrial sites  tenants/owners  multiple sectors

+ CSR-led initiative: Biodiversity Framework for Business • Aligned to CSR objectives Connects with ISO14001 • Framed as a starting • point - not an end goal • Aim is to provide inspiration Not a standard or • certification Applicable to any • company

+ Since then …  Delivering 1:1 support to member companies  Raising awareness with workshops and practical events  Brought NGOs on board  Thematic focus: pollinators, wildflowers, woodlands, hedgerows  Established a ‘Learning Network’  Case studies to date:  Intel – wildflower meadow, on-site walks, embedded biodiversity in EMS + published biodiversity report  Dawn Meats – integrated constructed wetland on-site  Accenture – biodiversity volunteering with local NGOs + pollinator/wildflower workshop with staff  Gas Networks Ireland/RTE – providing sites for an ecology post doc  RTE – changing they way they manage lawns on-site  Lots of interest and very positive feedback

+ Species-specific initiative: All-Ireland Pollinator Plan  Co-funded by Bord Bia (Irish Food Board), whose national sustainability programme Origin Green includes a biodiversity target for businesses  Business Guidelines launched in 2017 – BITCI co-authors  16 official ‘Business Supporters’ to date, 30 more in process  Businesses include food/beverage companies, shopping centres

+ Natural Capital-framed initiative Irish Forum on Natural Capital  Semi-state agencies on Steering Committee  Bord na Mona (peat/energy) & Coillte (forests)  Both undertaking CNCA  Brought Natural Capital Coalition, environmental economists at PwC & eftec, Yorkshire Water to Ireland for conferences and workshops on the Protocol, CNCA & Total Impact  Strong interest from multiple sectors  Agri-food, water, infrastructure, extractives, energy, forestry  EPL event coming up  Challenges to corporate engagement:  Lack of strong case studies  Difficulties in terms of internal capacity & resourcing

+ The future …  There is a continuum of action on biodiversity, from philanthropy and volunteering right up to natural capital accounting  Great enthusiasm from private sector for current initiatives  Our challenge:  How to harmonise efforts in order to move companies along the continuum?  How to promote learning/sharing?  How to engage C-level?  How to establish and resource a national Business & Biodiversity Platform?  Provided for in the draft National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, due to be published in 2017