Q&A on developing Nature-related disclosures

As part of the EcoAdvisors team, I had the pleasure of participating in the UN Global Compact Network Canada Webinar, ESG Regulations and Standards Webinar Series: Mastering Nature-Related Disclosures – A TNFD Business Guide. 

Anna Mahler, Environmental Consultant

It was a great opportunity to share our own TNFD journey as a TNFD Early Adopter and how we developed our nature-related disclosures by conducting foundational research, mapping disclosure pathways, and developing guidance aligned with TNFD’s LEAP approach for both consulting and project-based sectors.

Here are some Q&A highlights from the webinar to help strengthen the business case for nature-related disclosures: 

Q. What motivated EcoAdvisors to adopt the TNFD framework early on? 

A. EcoAdvisors’ mission is to help create a healthy planet where all people thrive. As an environmental sustainability consulting firm, we advise and help our cross-sector clients improve sustainability efforts, including reducing negative nature-related impacts and increasing positive ones. 

Back in 2019, our team was part of the Informal Working Group to establish the TNFD.  We then became a TNFD Early Adopter in 2024 to “walk the talk” and understand the LEAP assessment so we can help our own clients on their TNFD journeys and the management of their nature-related impacts, dependencies, risks, and opportunities. 

Q. How has the TNFD framework supported your clients' understanding of their nature-related dependencies and impacts? 

A. As we’ve engaged in the TNFD framework from both our own business perspective as well as that of our clients, the connections that businesses have with nature have become increasingly clear. Even as a service provider with consultants working remotely, EcoAdvisors was able to identify and assess our own indirect impacts on nature by adapting the TNFD Financial Institutions guidance to our own ‘project portfolio’ (the collection of projects on which we work each year). 

For many of our clients, once they understand their own nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks, and opportunities, they can begin carving out pathways to create long-term value from nature by:

• Increasing cost savings through improved operational efficiencies or by reducing capital expenditure and variable costs associated with nature-related impacts and dependencies; 

• Identifying new revenue sources that arise from a nature-positive approach, such as new markets for sustainable products.  

• Enhanced brand reputation; and  

• Better access to financing for sustainable growth by engaging in strong nature-based impact performance. 

Q. What lessons or best practices can you share with peers who are considering adopting TNFD but feel overwhelmed by where to begin? 

A. For those considering adopting TNFD and feel overwhelmed, start by getting aligned with a Theory of Change exercise. This encourages you to reflect on: 

• What is your organization’s vision for the future?  

• How does your organization and the decisions it makes contribute to that? 

• How do Nature and Climate fit into the organizational strategy? 

A Theory of Change can provide a visual, 1-page framework to create alignment – a crucial step to achieving climate and nature goals. It provides clarity of purpose, strategy integration, a framework to track progress and ensures an organization’s actions are intentionally designed to drive long-term, systemic impact. By breaking down strategies into various activities aligned to your goals, nature-related impacts, dependencies, risks, and opportunities become clearer. 

In 2022, EcoAdvisors refined its internal Impact Measurement and Management (IMM) Framework to better track and manage our sustainability impact and goals. Our IMM Framework is aligned with our Theory of Change and was informed by a comprehensive analysis of the existing impact reporting market landscape, including its actors, standards, and metrics (including TNFD).

Bottom line:

Nature is our greatest asset and value creator, and every business connects to it either directly or indirectly. So, helping to improve the state of nature is not only beneficial for planetary and human health, but also for the longevity and resilience of businesses.

 Follow our TNFD journey and view our 2024 Nature-related Disclosures.