High-Level Business Panel on Business Contributions to the Strategic Plan
List of speakers now available HERE
This panel will bring together Ministers, CEOs and other prominent figures to discuss how business can contribution to the implementation of the Strategic Plan in a practical manner as well as how governments can create the necessary enabling conditions for these types of sustainable business practices. Some of the issues that may be considered include:
- What are the barriers that exist to businesses regarding mainstreaming biodiversity?
- What sorts of enabling conditions can governments create to help businesses?
- How can businesses contribute to the implementation of both the Strategic Plan and the Sustainable Development Goals?
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Business Workshop Forum on Mainstreaming and Implementation
List of speakers and sessions now available HERE
The Business Workshop Forum will be broken down into four “sessions” each dealing with a specific theme with regard to how companies can successfully assess their impacts, build capacity within their organizations, and report on their progress. The initial session (#1) will specifically deal with Access and Benefit Sharing and Resource Mobilization (with the sessions conducted in parallel). They will take the form of moderated discussions with time provided after the presentations for comments and question and answer sessions.
The following three sessions (#2-4) will begin with plenary panel discussions featuring a number of expert speakers. These will examine the general concepts as well as illustrating some best practices and relevant policy information. These presentations will also highlight some of the overarching challenges that businesses and other stakeholders may face in dealing with these issues. Following each plenary panel, there will be four parallel focus-out groups that will examine various aspects of the topic under consideration in greater detail. These focus groups will not be presentation-based but rather will be interactive conversations between all participants. These various groups will be moderated and will include several speakers and practitioners who will initiate and facilitate the discussions. The audience is strongly encouraged to actively participate in these dialogues and to pose questions as well as share some of their examples of best practices.
Panel Session #1 (Parallel Sessions: CBD issues and Enabling Conditions)
Panel #1a: Access and Benefits Sharing - With the coming into force of the Nagoya Protocol, access and benefit sharing has taken on a particular importance for companies. This panel discussion will examine issues surrounding ABS vis-à-vis business as well as both the implications and opportunities for companies represented by the Protocol.
Panel #1b: Resource Mobilization - Resource mobilization will be one of the most important factors in determining the success or failure of the Strategic Plan and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. The business sector is one of the major players in this regard. This panel will examine some of the innovative financial mechanisms that are available to companies, as well as the safeguards that must be put in place so as to ensure that unintended negative consequences (such as those on local communities) are kept to a minimum.
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Panel Session #2 (Introductory Plenary Panel)---Mainstreaming and Assessment
Focus Group #2a: The 10YFP on Sustainable Consumption and Production: Opportunities for Business - This group will discuss the implications and opportunities for engagement by businesses with regard to the 10 Year Framework Programme on Sustainable Production and Consumption (SPC). The group will also examine some best practices in the area of SPC and how companies can benefit from these practices.
Focus Group #2b: What are the Roles and Benefits of Standards and Certification Schemes - There are a plethora of tools, standards and certification schemes available to businesses which can often be very confusing, particular for SMEs. This discussion will focus on how the various tools, standards, and certification schemes can benefit businesses. In addition, there will be some consideration given as to how businesses can select schemes that would best fit their needs.
Focus Group #2c: How to Develop a Biodiversity / Sustainability Action Plan - In order to take concrete action, companies need to develop a strategy to deal with their impacts and dependencies on biodiversity. This group will examine how companies can create a biodiversity or sustainability action plan, including the various factors and resource implications that must be considered internally when committing to this type of activity.
Focus Group #2d: How can Businesses Effectively Value Biodiversity - Biodiversity is often seen as a rather vague term by business, and it can also be difficult for them to understand their reliance and impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services. This discussion will focus on how companies can assess their impacts on biodiversity, including through a process of “valuing” (both in monetary and non-monetary terms) the ecosystem services that they are dependent upon.
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Panel Session #3 (Introductory Plenary Panel)---Capacity Building and Cooperation
Focus Group #3a: How to Train Managers and Employees to Ensure Buy-In - Sustainability can sometimes be seen as just a fad in corporate cultures. This group will examine the process of ensuring that both managers and staff understand how to implement sustainability plans. It will also explore how to keep managers and staff motivated to engage in the process, and how to ensure that sufficient resources are dedicated to these efforts.
Focus Group #3b: How to Engage Civil Society and Academia in Partnerships with Business - Often businesses lack the expertise or ability to implement sustainable processes on their own. This group will examine the advantages for businesses and NGOs or academia to enter into partnerships that can allow for greater capacity vis-à-vis ecologically friendly activities. This group will also look at some of the potential risks in this strategy and how these might be mitigated.
Focus Group #3c: What are the Benefits and Means of Engaging with Local Communities - Mistrust and misunderstandings are often common occurrences when businesses engage with local communities, even if both sides begin with the best of intentions. This discussion will focus on how business must engage with local communities so as to ensure a viable and equitable relationship. It will also explore how companies can obtain a social licence to operate that ensures respect for both ecological and social standards.
Focus Group #3d: Approaches to, and Implications of, Sustainable Procurement and Supply Chain Management - Very few companies are able to act in isolation in today’s globalized world. Whether a company is at the head of a value chain, or one of the lower-tier suppliers, understanding the dynamics of sustainable procurement is vital. This panel will examine some of the aspects of sustainable procurement, including public procurement, as well as discussing some best practices.
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Panel Session #4 (Introductory Plenary Panel)---Reporting and Communication
Focus Group #4a: How to Include Sustainability Issues into Corporate Reporting - There is often a tension between reporting on economic performance and environmental sustainability, with the latter sometimes being seen as a hindrance to the former. This panel will explore how reporting to shareholders and other corporate interests can fully articulate the benefits of sustainability vis-à-vis economic performance and ensure that these practices are encouraged in the future.
Focus Group #4b: How to Effectively Communicate with Various Stakeholder Groups - In communicating their environmental impacts and activities, many companies either overstate their sustainability credentials (which can be seen as “Greenwashing”) or understate them. This panel will explore how to avoid these errors and ensure that communication with stakeholders and consumers are accurate and lead to constructive engagement.
Focus Group #4c: How to make Sustainability Reports Transparent and Accurate - Companies are often unsure of what to report with respect to biodiversity and sustainability, particularly given the wide array of reporting standards and terminology. This panel will examine some best practices and widely used approaches to ensure maximum accuracy and transparency in corporate reporting in this area.
Focus Group #4d: How can Business better Understand the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity and get Involved in the International Process - The various international processes, such as those at the CBD, can often seem remote to companies, but they often have a direct impact on national legislation, which will, in turn, affect companies. This panel will help companies to understand the international fora and how they can become involved so as to better understand, and contribute to, the outcomes.
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Closed Session for the Global Partnership
This will be a closed meeting for the National and Regional Initiatives that comprise the Global Partnership (as well as NGO observers) to discuss administrative issues of the Partnership as well as future directions and activities.
