BIOFIN-EU is a 3-year research project focused on unlocking financial flows essential for protecting and reversing biodiversity loss. The project aims to drive transformative change by extending knowledge on how biodiversity and ecosystems data is considered across a range of settings within mainstream finance, including; bank lending, institutional and individual investment decisions, commodity trading, asset management. It further provides guidance on how existing nature-related data and ecological expertise can be deployed within these settings so that financial flows are redirected in support of Environmental Objective 6 of the EU’s Sustainable Finance Taxonomy. BIOFIN-EU draws on several learning sites to identify how Nature-based Solutions (NbS) can access mainstream finance and the project analyses the implications for both ownership and control when deploying mainstream finance to support the green transition.
BIOFIN-EU is using a multi-actor approach to create impact through a science-led dashboard for nature positive financial decision support. Built with, and for, six key groups: ecologists, data scientists, financial and accounting experts, citizens, providers of nature-based solutions (NbS) as well as investors (e.g. financial institutions, non-financial companies (NFCs), State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs)), the Dashboard will help actors navigate large-scale financing challenges and to develop, replicate, scale out and strengthen NbS-investment. The dashboard and broader research within BIOFIN-EU contribute to a more complete understanding of the gaps in existing financial and environmental policy and their implementation, the preferences of institutional and individual investors and the system and skills limitations that exist in financial institutions and non-financial corporations. Project outcomes will support policy formation through evidence-based recommendations, and co-design pathways for skills and knowledge accelerators in the European financial services industry.
Context and overall objectives
Nature is the foundation of human existence, underpinning our quality of life and the stability of society. Both directly and indirectly, we depend on biodiversity and ecosystem services for survival. Yet the global financial system, as currently designed, has amplified humanity’s capacity to extract natural resources, shaping modern economies in ways that often overlook environmental limits. BIOFIN-EU focuses on real-world financing scenarios, helping stakeholders navigate conventional investment decisions while aligning with the EU’s policy objectives in relation to nature restoration and the protection of ecosystems. This work is critical to realizing the EU’s Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and achieving climate neutrality by 2050.
