Indigenous Peoples must be involved in shaping the nascent biodiversity market, the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) co-chair has said.

Speaking at the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Elizabeth Mrema called for engaging with Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) in biodiversity project implementation to ensure they can gain from their sales.

“Negotiations take place at a high level, but actual implementation is on the ground level. The local communities are only 5% of the world’s population but are safeguarding 80% of the biodiversity. They have the land and the resources”, Mrema said during a biodiversity credit session.

Yesterday, in Davos, TNFD announced that 320 organisations and corporations worldwide have committed to adopting its guidelines on nature-related financial disclosures within the next two years.

Under the TNFD, a company is required, among other things, to “describe its human rights policies and engagement activities related to its assessment and management of nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities … with a priority on IPLCs”, the task force says in its recommendations.

While the voluntary biodiversity credits market is currently estimated at around $8 million, global demand could reach $180 billion under a radical future, WEF said last month.

In December, presenting the report Biodiversity Credits: Demand Drivers and Guidance on Early Use, WEF also warned that “scaling up the market will require aligning on common principles of integrity”.

“Engaging Indigenous peoples and local communities is critical to ensure the market delivers for nature in a way that is equitable”.

The urgent need to involve IPLCs in the market and the decision-making process was also highlighted by Esther Netshivhongweni, chair of the Community Advisory Panel at the Biodiversity Credits Alliance (BCA), a UN-backed forum consisting primarily of project developers, during the panel.

“Communities own or are custodians of the lands, but developers and investors negotiate with the government, and the government signs the contracts. Local communities must be respected from day one as partners”, Netshivhongweni said.

Mariana Sarmiento, the founder and CEO of the Colombian developer Terrasos, added: “They’re not just the stewards of nature; they’re also the knowledge-holders, but are they given the elements and the tools to participate in the market?”.

At the end of the session, Tim Coles, CEO of biodiversity credit project developer RePlanet, put forward two proposals in a bid to enhance the integrity of the biodiversity credit markets.

“A system should be put in place for recording the benefits to families and local communities on a regular basis. Every six months, there should be a listing of how much benefit each of those community members have had,” he said.

At least 60% of the final value of the biodiversity credits should be paid to the local communities into a sustainable business livelihood fund, Coles said.

By Sergio Colombo – sergio@carbon-pulse.com

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