Report Launched on Stemming Rising Tide of Nature Loss in Asia
Eurasia Group and Suntory Holdings unveiled a report charting the path forward for businesses in devising corporate nature strategies with lasting impact.
Entitled “Addressing Nature Loss in Asia: The Next Sustainability Challenge for Businesses” explores how the continued erosion of nature is weakening prospects for long-term economic prosperity across Asia-Pacific, where nearly two-thirds of the region’s GDP is at risk from nature loss.
The report is the culmination of a year-long project, building on key learnings from a roundtable series in 2022 that explored the role of biodiversity in business today and a live digital event in December 2022 focused on the link between business sustainability and a healthy, living planet.
“Now that the full report is out, I hope businesses—particularly ones in Asia—will see this as a challenge to act urgently and creatively,” said Suntory CEO Tak Niinami. “There is real risk here, but also a real opportunity. Companies that seriously consider their responsibilities to nature have seen risks transformed into competitive gains, and that is something we want to highlight with this report.”
“A healthy planet is critical for businesses to thrive sustainably. This report makes clear that companies don’t operate in a vacuum, and they should care about biodiversity, not only for regulatory or reputational reasons but increasingly for material and financial ones,” said Eurasia Group president Ian Bremmer. “We are proud to have partnered with Suntory in this effort to chart a path for businesses to help preserve the natural ecosystems they, their suppliers, their investors, and their customers existentially rely on.”
The report is a product of the Sustainability Leaders Council, an initiative created by Eurasia Group and Suntory in 2021 with a mission to position Asia as a leading force for change within the climate and sustainability sphere.
The key takeaways and recommendations highlighted in the report include:
Businesses have a short window of opportunity to get ahead of the competition by acting now to manage biodiversity risks.
Environmental awareness is particularly prevalent among Asian consumers, with 70% of people preferring to buy products from companies that respect biodiversity and people.
Most people in China (92%), Vietnam (93%), and South Korea (85%) think that companies have a moral obligation to generate a positive impact on biodiversity and people through their sourcing of natural ingredients.
Some estimates suggest nature-positive business opportunities in Asia-Pacific could generate $4.3 trillion by 2030—equivalent to 14% of the region’s GDP.
Asian businesses are highly dependent on the goods and services provided by nature, perhaps more so than firms on any other continent, placing them at particular risk of disruption from nature loss. For example, agriculture, fishing, and forestry account for over 90% of deforestation in Asia-Pacific, including 2.2 million hectares of tropical forest loss annually.
The report recommends a first step for businesses is to conduct biodiversity screenings to develop a good understanding of where and how they interact with, and affect nature.
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