A Guidebook for Businesses on Nature

The World Resources Institute's guidebook provides corporate decision-makers with the ARK and SPARK frameworks to integrate nature into business strategy. It identifies key internal enablers, such as leadership commitment and governance, and external drivers, including the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The document also outlines barriers to action, specifically financing constraints and the difficulty of establishing a clear business case for nature investments.

• The World Resources Institute developed the ARK and SPARK frameworks to provide corporate decision-makers with a step-by-step process for integrating nature into business decisions. The ARK framework consists of three essential steps and two optional preliminary steps: identifying risks and opportunities, prioritizing significance, assessing support and action, refining operational mechanisms, and kicking off and evaluating.
• Corporate action on nature is being driven by external pressures, including investor demand, regulatory developments, and consumer demands. These factors are linked to the adoption of the 2022 Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and its 30x30 Nature Goals.
• Internal enablers for nature strategies include visionary leadership from CEOs or board members, a corporate culture that values sustainability, and dedicated governance structures that align sustainability goals with business objectives.
• Businesses face three primary barriers to nature action: a lack of internal motivation or awareness (especially if operations do not directly depend on biodiversity), financing constraints caused by the long time horizons of nature initiatives versus short-term financial priorities, and difficulty in articulating a clear business case due to a lack of relevant KPIs or challenges in pricing risks.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). A Guidebook for Businesses on Nature. https://www.wri.org/research/guidebook-businesses-nature

Chicago

World Resources Institute. A Guidebook for Businesses on Nature. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/guidebook-businesses-nature.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=A Guidebook for Businesses on Nature |url=https://www.wri.org/research/guidebook-businesses-nature |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendguidebook, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{A Guidebook for Businesses on Nature}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/guidebook-businesses-nature}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }