The Commissioners focus on using our influence as a responsible investor to engage companies and policy makers on the challenges facing society and our planet. Alongside our extensive work on climate change, we are encouraging companies and governments to take immediate action to combat nature loss.

Harry Ashman, Engagement Analyst at the Church Commissioners, spoke to representatives of the UN Environment Programme and Green Finance Initiative at the Responsible Investor Panel Discussion on how UK institutional investors can back government policy to mitigate the cost of biodiversity loss and damage to ecosystems.

As part of the event, Harry said:

“Alongside the physical risks posed by the depletion of the ecosystem, resources and resilience that biodiversity provides, investors also face regulatory, reputational and transitional risks as global action to protect nature gathers pace. Investors and companies must act urgently to understand their impacts and dependencies on nature and start to mitigate these risks. These challenges must be treated on a par with climate change, indeed an integrated response is required as they are interdependent crises.”