In major news for natural capital from the Cop15 global summit (Conference of the Parties on Biological Diversity), the United States and Australian governments have announced that they will embark on a joint approach to natural capital accounting using the UN System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) framework to value nature in national accounts.
The framework was developed by our INCASE team colleagues, IDEEA Group's Mark Eigenraam and Carl Obst, and it's the method used in our work applying the natural capital approach in Irish catchments.
The US & Australia issued a joint statement on the announcement at the crucial Cop15 event for biodiversity in Montreal, Canada - they intend to share experiences, methods and learnings on various topics that the participants have in common including:
Accounting for large and biodiverse spatial areas with sizable and diverse land and water interests,
Coordinating across multiple states and territories, and
Weaving in diverse cultures, including Indigenous Peoples.
IDEEA Group Director, Mark Eigenraam said of the announcement: “This is a game changer for business in the USA and Australia. It will have far-reaching impacts for the environment. And it will put an end to greenwashing.”
Read the full statement HERE.