Mobilizing Capital for Natural Infrastructure in Canada

The document defines natural infrastructure as managed natural systems designed to provide environmental and human benefits, such as wetlands and forests. It identifies a gap between early-stage valuation and actual project finance, suggesting that success depends on identifying specific drivers, lead beneficiaries, and securing catalyst funding. It recommends that funders support targeted research, performance metrics, and pre-development efforts to scale these investments.

• Natural infrastructure consists of naturally occurring or naturalized systems, such as forests, grasslands, floodplains, and wetlands, that are intentionally managed to optimize benefits for human well-being and the environment beyond what would occur if left unmanaged.
• Funding for natural infrastructure typically requires a mix of sources, often starting with philanthropic catalyst grants followed by larger, long-term public funds, though large-scale investment currently lags despite evidence of project value.
• Project champions are more likely to secure innovative finance solutions by following a specific process: identifying a driver, determining a lead beneficiary or implementer, creating a pitch, forming a partnership, and obtaining pre-development funding.
• To increase the scale of natural infrastructure, funders and investors should prioritize filling data gaps through research, developing performance metrics, aligning beneficiaries, and providing dedicated pre-development support.

APA

Roy,, S. V. ,. (2020). Mobilizing Capital for Natural Infrastructure in Canada. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/guide/mobilizing-capital-natural-infrastructure-canada

Chicago

Roy,, Shalini Vajjhala ,Dimple. Mobilizing Capital for Natural Infrastructure in Canada. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2020. https://www.iisd.org/publications/guide/mobilizing-capital-natural-infrastructure-canada.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Roy, |first1=Shalini Vajjhala ,Dimple |title=Mobilizing Capital for Natural Infrastructure in Canada |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=1 December 2020 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/guide/mobilizing-capital-natural-infrastructure-canada |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{roy2020mobilizing, author = {Roy,, Shalini Vajjhala ,Dimple}, title = {{Mobilizing Capital for Natural Infrastructure in Canada}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2020}, month = dec, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/guide/mobilizing-capital-natural-infrastructure-canada}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }