Natural Capital Protocol business piloting commences

Today, over 40 leading businesses will be the first to see the new draft of the Natural Capital Protocol, being developed by the Natural Capital Coalition of which we are a member. The testing programme will be led by the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL), a member of the Coalition.

The companies will join an already extensive group of organisations in this unique collaborative process, which involves the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), leading a consortium on the writing of the Protocol, and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), leading a consortium on the engagement process. The final Protocol will enable companies to improve their decision making by standardising how their relationship with nature is measured and valued.

Ten businesses will be testing the Protocol in depth, including The Coca-Cola Company, The Dow Chemical Company (Dow), F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Hugo Boss, Kering, Natura, Nespresso, Nestlé, Olam International and Shell. Each will test the Protocol against specific business applications, including: assessing water use opportunities and risks in site specific locations (Dow Chemical); identifying the drivers of environmental impacts along the supply chain to inform raw material procurement strategies (Hugo Boss); investigating how natural capital assessments can potentially enhance the management and reporting of environmental issues (F. Hoffmann-La Roche); and exploring how to bring Natural Capital assessment results into strategic business decisions (Kering). More than 30 additional businesses are testing specific aspects of the Protocol, including a range of different geographies and sectors meaning over 40 businesses in total are contributing to the development of the Protocol.

This first-of-its-kind programme is designed for businesses to live-test, refine and influence the final Protocol to ensure it is robust, practical and relevant to the entire private sector.

http://www.naturalcapitalcoalition.org/news/article/leading-businesses-commence-testing-of-a-new-natural-capital-protocol.html