Deep in Conservation

Ecoal, March 2010, Volume 70

Leading conservation charity Fauna & Flora International (FFI) has teamed up with Anglo American to reach common goals. Helen Nyul, who is in charge of FFI's relationship with Anglo American, explores the mutual benefits of industry and conservation coming together.

Something is stirring in the conservation sector that might surprise much of the public. The worlds of industry and biodiversity are increasingly seeing the business sense in working together. Although the finger-pointing campaigns of green groups are often more high profile, meaningful partnerships between the private sector and conservation organisations have been flourishing.

Many conservationists have woken up to the fact that more can be achieved for biodiversity causes by working with the corporate sector rather than against it. Where the greatest impacts on our natural world occur, so too do the greatest opportunities for change. The private sector has great power, and harnessing its skills and resources can strengthen conservation priorities and objectives.

In addition, businesses are realising that the benefits provided by biodiversity must be valued and accounted for within traditional business-risk frameworks. They are startingto understand that biodiversity isn't just a concern for the sandals brigade and that, if they fail to act soon, it will affect their bottom line.

Breaking the Mould

Fauna & Flora International was one of the first conservation organisations to realise the benefits of working with the corporate sector; its partnerships programme having now been running for over 15 years. Its mission is to conserve the planet's threatened species and ecosystems by working alongside the people and communities who depend on them.

"We work where the need is greatest," says Pippa Howard, director of corporate partnerships for FFI. "This can mean focusing on countries which lack the resources to protect their rich wildlife or engaging with those sectors with the highest impact on biodiversity, such as the oil and gas, mining, tobacco and palm oil sectors.

"We're not afraid of standing out from the crowd and a trademark of our conservation work is our partnership approach. Much of what we achieve globally is through the support we give to our partner organisations on the ground. We believe in building up the skills sets of local conservation groups to help them protect their own biodiversity. It's a two-way deal; we often learn invaluable skills from them. This mutually beneficial partnership approach is equally applied in our corporate work."

A Natural Relationship

FFI entered into a three-year partnership with Anglo American in April 2008. The pairing of FFI and Anglo was a natural one. FFI saw that Anglo was seriously committed to improving its biodiversity impact and Anglo, in turn, chose FFI because of its excellent reputation within the conservation sector. FFI also has expertise in biodiversity-focused assessments in the mining sector through its partnership with Rio Tinto.

Anglo started working with FFI through its Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) protocols. Required of each Anglo operation, a BAP assesses a mine's impact on biodiversity and lays out any actions that should be taken to minimise them. To support the operations in developing their BAPs, Anglo, with assistance from FFI, developed the Anglo BAP guidance document, which is aligned with the International Council on Mining & Metals' (ICMM) Good Practice Guidance for Mining and Biodiversity.

The BAPs are a critical tool for improving biodiversity performance at each Anglo site. FFI has played a key role in the annual peer reviews to assess the effectiveness of BAP planning and implementation, to recognise risks and opportunities, and to make recommendations that will bring the BAPs in line with international good practice. The peer reviews raise awareness of the fundamental importance of biodiversity and ecosystem services, promote group learning and share good practice.

In the past two years, FFI has led 13 Anglo BAP peer reviews, through which Anglo benefits from FFI's expertise and FFI can progress its mission to protect wildlife both at mining sites and at a broader level.

Learning Opportunities

"At FFI, we see ourselves as an outside assessor or, rather, a 'critical friend''," says Pippa. "We are well placed to identify opportunities and risks, thanks to our external perspective. We look for practical contributions that the partnership can achieve for the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services. Our involvement in the peer reviews strengthens the credibility of the results. By verifying what's happening on the ground, we have helped to establish Anglo as a first-class performer in the sector in addressing biodiversity.

"One aspect of our partnership work that we stress is its capacity-building potential. Anglo staff involved in BAPs learn from FFI's reviews, while FFI staff learn about the opportunities for furthering biodiversity conservation at each of the sites and from how Anglo staff have approached these opportunities.

FFI has assisted Anglo at a more strategic level by reviewing documentation related to the company's overarching biodiversity strategies and guidelines. For example, it has been, and still is, involved in the company's Biodiversity Performance Standard, which is part of the Anglo Environment Way. As such, Anglo is kept up to date with emerging issues and new thinking in the environmental and conservation sector.

Community Buy-in

In conducting peer reviews, FFI has found differing levels of integration of biodiversity across Anglo's operations. It has been impressed by Anglo's approach to normalising company-wide performance by setting an internal standard that meets international best practice. The challenge lies in the extent of operational uptake and response to the recommendations made, and if and how sites seize opportunities to help achieve leadership positions both locally and internationally.

This process of engagement and buy-in will hopefully result in better collaboration in the implementation of sustainable and appropriate offsets.

Clearly, biodiversity has not always been a core consideration for corporations and FFI's challenge is to raise awareness of the central and fundamental place it should hold. There needs to be a paradigm shift towards an understanding of the functional services provided by biodiversity, as well as the economic value inherent in the ecosystems that they form. Safety, financial success and biodiversity are interdependent and must exist side by side to help secure a sustainable future.

Promising Future

The aim of the proposed three-year partnership between FFI and Anglo American is to create a synergy that is proactive and innovative. It should maximise the conservation benefits arising from the management of biodiversity and expand projects that seek to protect ecosystem services and alleviate pressures of climate change. FFI will also assist Anglo in playing a supporting role for sustainable development within the regions in which it operates.

"The partnership between FFI and Anglo is a fine example of the merging worlds of business and biodiversity," concludes Pippa. "We recognised the mutual benefits of working together and have shown that this is not just a pipe dream. Real improvements have been made at Anglo's sites and, as a result, impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services are better managed, thereby securing environmental resources for future generations.

"It's only the beginning of what may be a long-standing relationship. Given how much we have already achieved, the future promises many more successes. Our hope is that this partnership will stand as a model for other companies and environmental charities that team up in the future. Ultimately, we all rely on the natural world, but it's going to take all of us working together to protect it."

The Case for Biodiversity

Biodiversity - the variety of life on earth - provides a range of goods and services collectively termed ecosystem services, on which all businesses are reliant: the provision of clean water, the maintenance of fertile soils, pollination of plants and the regulation of climate, for example.

According to the UN, more than 60% of these services are being used up faster than they can be replenished. The trend is likely to be accentuated as demand for raw materials continues to grow. This clearly has implications for the long-term viability of the businesses that depend on natural resources for value generation.

Businesses that take account of biodiversity in their operations stand to benefit in countless ways. An obvious one is reduced risks and liabilities. Protecting the resources you rely on makes sense if you want to stay in business in the long term. Another benefit is increased investor confidence and loyalty. A company's green credentials are increasingly playing a role in investment decisions, partly due to consumers becoming savvier when it comes to choosing one brand over another.

Safeguarding biodiversity and ecosystem health may also help to smooth relations with regulators, making it much easier to obtain and maintain a licence to operate. And there are many more advantages for engaging in biodiversity issues: increased involvement in and influence on public policy debates, improved community relations, engagement with employees and, of course, strong and supportive partnerships with NGOs (non-governmental organisations).

Author Note: Helen Nyul is a programme manager within Fauna & Flora International's Conservation Partnerships Programme. Helen has worked in the UK's environmental sector for nine years, on projects ranging from community-based conservation to the development of regional biodiversity action plans and integration of these into a wide range of business sectors.