On Tuesday 2nd February, a latest review commissioned by the Treasury enumerated the ways in which individuals must account for nature in economics and decision-making.
The review that is first of its kind and is undertaken by Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta presents the first comprehensive economic framework of its kind for biodiversity. It calls for urgent and transformative change in how we think, act and measure economic success to protect and enhance our prosperity and the natural world. Grounded in a deep understanding of ecosystem processes and how they are affected by economic activity, the new framework presented by the Dasgupta Review sets out the ways in which we should account for nature in economics and decision-making.
Professor Dasgupta said, “Truly sustainable economic growth and development means recognising that our long-term prosperity relies on rebalancing our demand of nature’s goods and services with its capacity to supply them. It also means accounting fully for the impact of our interactions with Nature across all levels of society. Covid-19 has shown us what can happen when we don’t do this. Nature is our home. Good economics demands we manage it better.”
The Review makes clear that urgent and transformative action taken now would be significantly less costly than delay and will require change on three broad fronts:
• Humanity must ensure its demands on nature do not exceed its sustainable supply and must increase the global supply of natural assets relative to their current level. For example, expanding and improving management of Protected Areas; increasing investment in Nature-based Solutions; and deploying policies that discourage damaging forms of consumption and production.
• We should adopt different metrics for economic success and move towards an inclusive measure of wealth that accounts for the benefits from investing in natural assets and helps to make clear the trade-offs between investments in different assets. Introducing natural capital into national accounting systems is a critical step.
• We must transform our institutions and systems – particularly finance and education – to enable these changes and sustain them for future generations. For example, by increasing public and financial flows that enhance our natural assets and decrease those that degrade them; and by empowering citizens to make informed choices and demand change, including by firmly establishing the natural world in education policy.
The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Kemi Badenoch said, “Protecting and enhancing our natural assets, and the biodiversity that underpins them, is crucial to achieving a sustainable, resilient economy. That is why the UK is already investing more than £600 million in nature-based climate solutions, such as tree planting and peatland restoration.
I want to thank Professor Dasgupta for his landmark Review. We will examine the Review’s findings and respond formally in due course.”
