Species Threat Abatement and Restoration

starfish on rocks

A wealth of evidence demonstrates that complex agricultural landscapes boast more biodiversity than simple ones.

At NbI, we are working hard to build a future where complex, healthy landscapes feature a mosaic of protected and restored ecosystems alongside sustainably managed production lands interconnected through extensive wildlife corridors.

To achieve this, we have been working with corporate sustainability teams, financial investors, and NGOs to develop an analytical framework that helps our clients assess and report their nature impacts and implement and monitor nature-based solutions with integrity. Our analytical framework informs all phases of a nature strategy: from onboarding and data analysis to engaging local stakeholders, interpreting results, planning, implementation, and ongoing monitoring.

We are proud to announce our collaboration with the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT), an essential resource for assessing biodiversity and understanding its global distribution. IBAT offers access to three of the world’s most authoritative global biodiversity datasets: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, World Database on Protected Areas, and World Database of Key Biodiversity Areas.

Biodiversity is a multidimensional concept, so monitoring the impact of a range of activities and identifying risks associated with biodiversity loss and opportunities for supporting biodiversity requires a combination of metrics and analyses to provide a clear understanding of a landscape’s condition.

The NbI Analytics model synthesises all the desk-based evidence you need to design, implement, and report on a site-specific nature-positive strategy. It is based on a library of 20+ datasets providing biodiversity, carbon, and risk information. Our R&D process ensures the model utilises the newest science to generate decision-friendly information. One of the tools we harness is the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT) Species Threat Abatement and Restoration (STAR) model.

NbI Analytics can be used to:

  • Identify priority areas within landscapes to implement different NbS options, such as which ecosystems to protect, which farms to manage and where restoration may yield the most benefits.
  • Inform potential NbS options, such as flood risk reduction measures which also support connectivity.
  • Establish a baseline for the ecological state of a landscape.
  • Quantify a commodity’s or supply chain’s impact within the landscape, and set targets.
  • Estimate the landscape-scale benefits of NbS options to biodiversity through scenario modelling.

The NbI Analytics model is founded on the Biodiversity Impact Metric (BIM) which uses a company’s procurement data to measure impact based on a company’s spatial footprint and land use intensity, and weights this by the importance of local biodiversity. NbI’s approach expands the scope of the BIM to include key anthropogenic pressures on biodiversity (e.g. soil eutrophication, climate change, habitat fragmentation, hydrological change, wetland conversion, runoff within a catchment).

This approach is complemented by adoption of the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT) Species Threat Abatement and Restoration (STAR)metric, which is calculated from data on the distribution, threats, and extinction risk of threatened species derived from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. STAR allows for the quantification of the potential contributions that species threat abatement and restoration activities offer towards reducing extinction risk across the world. STAR can also be used to identify key hotspots for impactful restoration efforts to reduce extinction risk based on available areas of habitat.

IBAT’s ‘STAR’ metric, or Species Threat Abatement and Restoration, leverages data from the IUCN Red List to quantify the potential benefits of conservation efforts on reducing extinction risk across the globe. By analysing threat distribution, species vulnerability, and habitat range, IBAT STAR aims to empower stakeholders to:

–        Identify impactful actions: STAR helps pinpoint areas where conservation efforts can have the most significant effect on threatened species.

–        Set science-based targets: Data-driven insights from STAR can inform the development of realistic and achievable conservation goals aligned with global biodiversity frameworks.

–        Measure progress: Tracking changes in STAR values over time allows stakeholders to assess the effectiveness of implemented conservation strategies.

 

NbI’s Analytics model addresses the urgent need for high-integrity, evidence-based biodiversity and ecosystem service management approaches, enabling users to make data-driven decisions and track measurable outcomes. Our framework offers a comprehensive strategy for implementing nature-based solutions with integrity, ensuring that corporate sustainability targets translate into measurable, on-the-ground actions.

Get in touch to request a demo:  [email protected]

 

 

24 September 2024