On March 26^th and 27^th, LIFE Institute participated in the workshop on “Biodiversity Accounting Approaches for Business” in Brussels, Belgium. The event was a joint initiative by UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) and the EU Business and Biodiversity Platform (B@B Platform), with the support of Boticário Group Foundation.

The main objective of the event was to analyze methodologies behind a number of biodiversity accounting approaches for business, including LIFE Methodology. Another goal was to define common ground principles to be used by the different methodologies.

The dynamic of the event consisted on technical discussion of four main subjects: Business applications and targets; Scope, boundaries, baselines; Data sets for impact assessments; and Metrics. For example, it was discussed if it is clear for businesses the application of the metrics, the different definitions used by the methodologies and its implication on the decision-making process. It was also debated about the type of data requested to the companies and the influence of this work on business applications.

The working groups debated key questions which answers might guide businesses so they can indeed integrate biodiversity into business practices. For example: why biodiversity matters to my business? What dependencies and impacts on biodiversity my business has? How can my business measure its dependences and impacts? How can my business value its biodiversity impacts and dependencies? What strategy can my business design to manage its impacts and dependencies? How can my business improve its decision-making about biodiversity? How can my business disclose its biodiversity performance?

The workshop was technical in nature, near 40 experts represented 35 different institutions, enriching the discussions. Maria Alice Alexandre, Regiane Borsato and Fernanda Toledo attended to the workshop representing LIFE Institute.

The work for defining common ground principles for biodiversity accounting approaches for business was started and LIFE Institute will continue to contribute with its experience. The discussions will continue virtually, until the next workshop, planned to happen in Brazil, next October.