On Tuesday, October 6, 2020, 12:15-2:00 p.m. PDT, ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes Founding Director Leah Gerber hosted a panel discussion on “Industry Partnerships for Biodiversity Outcomes: Measuring private sector contributions toward mitigating biodiversity loss.”
This presentation was originally held on September 21 as part of the United Nations Global Compact’s Uniting Business LIVE (September 21-23), which marked the opening of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly. Due to technical difficulties during the UN conference and by popular demand we presented the session once again.
The panel included CBO partners from industry and NGO sectors, including Laura McConnell, University and Scientific Society Engagement, Regulatory and Scientific Affairs, BayerCrop Science; Christian Newman, Technical Executive, Endangered and Protected Species, Sustain Sustainability and Ecosystem Stewardship Research Group, Electric Power Research Institute; Frank Hawkins, Director, International Union for Conservation of Nature – United States; and Christopher Barton, fellow, ASU Office of the President.
About the event
Global biodiversity loss is occurring at an unprecedented rate. The recent global assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services reports that approximately 1 million species are threatened with extinction.
The corporate sector has shown an increasing commitment to considering sustainability issues over the past decade. However, many companies lack mechanisms to measure, report and monitor biodiversity and incentive to rigorously consider biodiversity in operations.
Biodiversity materiality represents an enormous risk for companies but is difficult to quantify. Companies need access to data and technical support to ensure they have the expertise to implement effective biodiversity management plans across their core operations and value chains.
The ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes helps bridge this gap by engaging companies and governments in identifying important areas where resources should be allocated and how to report contributions toward the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 15, or SDG15.
The panel described their theory of change for working with the private sector and best practices for achieving biodiversity outcomes in industry-academic partnerships.
Following the presentations, the panelists also facilitated a short Q & A session with the audience.
As reported by the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory, 36 hours of content on a global virtual stage were showcased during the 2020 UN Global Compact Uniting Business LIVE. In partnership with the Thunderbird School of Global Management, we engaged 142 global futures faculty, staff and partners. Over 1,300 ASU community members registered.
All the recorded content will be available on the UNGC channel.