Clean Energy as a Catalyst for a Nature-Positive Transition

The document highlights the tension between the rapid scale-up of clean energy needed for the Paris Agreement and the resulting pressures on biodiversity from land and sea use. It advocates for a 'nature-positive' approach—halting and reversing biodiversity loss—through the application of the mitigation hierarchy and net-positive impact (NPI) goals. The briefing outlines six key enablers: government policy (e.g., England's Biodiversity Net Gain mandate), standardized measurement frameworks (e.g., TNFD and GRI), visionary corporate leadership, cross-sector partnerships, innovative financing (e.g., blue bonds), and the use of data and AI for environmental monitoring.

• Clean energy deployment is essential for climate goals, potentially achieving 90% of the energy-related CO2 emission reductions required for the Paris Agreement's 1.5˚C target, but this requires tripling capacity by 2030 and a ninefold increase by 2050. However, this scale-up can increase biodiversity pressures by fragmenting ecosystems, disturbing habitats, and through mining for rare earth minerals.
• A 'nature-positive' transition aims to halt and reverse biodiversity loss, aligning with the Global Biodiversity Framework's 2030 mission to conserve 30% of land, water, and seas and restore 30% of degraded ecosystems. Achieving this in the energy sector involves ensuring infrastructure has a net-positive impact (NPI) and following the mitigation hierarchy to prevent irreplaceable loss.
• Government policy is a primary driver for nature-positive action. Examples include England's 2024 Biodiversity Net Gain mandate, which requires new developments to achieve at least a 10% gain, and South Africa's use of nature sensitivity mapping to identify Renewable Energy Development Zones (REDZ).
• There is a significant gap between CEO perception and corporate action regarding biodiversity; while 80% of CEOs claim a strong understanding of their business impact on biodiversity, only 35% are initiating restoration or protection, and only 5% of the 400 most influential companies have assessed their operational impact on nature.
• Several energy companies have set specific biodiversity targets: Tata Power and Enel aim for no net loss to biodiversity by 2030, Ørsted pledges net-positive impact for all new projects by 2030, and Iberdrola aims to be net positive for new developments from 2025 and all assets by 2030.
• Innovative financial instruments are emerging to fund nature-positive energy transitions, including the issuance of the first blue bonds by Ørsted in 2023 and Iberdrola’s Carbon2Nature mechanism, which uses carbon credits to fund nature-positive solutions.
• Technological innovations are improving biodiversity monitoring and planning. These include the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT), BirdLife International's Avian Sensitivity Tool for Energy Planning (AVISTEP), and the use of AI by Vattenfall to record 3D flight behaviour of seabirds near offshore wind farms in Aberdeen.

APA

Misrahi, P. P., Marais, C., & Varoli, I. (2024). Clean Energy as a Catalyst for a Nature-Positive Transition. World Economic Forum. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Clean_Energy_2024.pdf

Chicago

Misrahi, Prerana Pakhrin, Christelle Marais, and Irene Varoli. Clean Energy as a Catalyst for a Nature-Positive Transition. World Economic Forum, 2024. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Clean_Energy_2024.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Misrahi |first1=Prerana Pakhrin |last2=Marais |first2=Christelle |last3=Varoli |first3=Irene |title=Clean Energy as a Catalyst for a Nature-Positive Transition |publisher=World Economic Forum |date=April 2024 |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Clean_Energy_2024.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{misrahi2024clean, author = {Misrahi, Prerana Pakhrin and Marais, Christelle and Varoli, Irene}, title = {{Clean Energy as a Catalyst for a Nature-Positive Transition}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2024}, month = apr, url = {https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Clean_Energy_2024.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }