The Align project – Aligning accounting approaches for nature – will support businesses, financial institutions and other stakeholders in developing standardised natural capital accounting practices, including a standardised approach to biodiversity measurement. Align focuses its efforts on the space where experimentation has occurred, many different methodologies have evolved, and a business need has been expressed. Align’s aim is to accelerate the natural evolution of natural capital accounting approaches from guidance to standardisation.
Align is a 3-year business-focused and business-driven project. Businesses and other stakeholders in the field of natural capital management accounting and corporate biodiversity measurement, valuation and disclosure will have various opportunities to engage in the project throughout its lifespan. Among the engagement activities is an annual survey.
The objectives of the Align Scoping Survey (Year 1) are:
1. Confirm needs, interests and challenges of the broader Align community members with regard to (i) corporate biodiversity measurement approaches, and (ii) corporate natural capital management accounting (NCMA) experience. NCMA goes beyond biodiversity and includes air, water and land.
2. Establish a baseline of business knowledge and business experience on both issues
3. Identify key areas of potential alignment in both areas
4. Secure initial input into the way in which biodiversity measurement challenges can best be addressed
5. Secure initial understanding of training & education, and research & innovation needs and potential actions to address these
6. Input into initial development of a biodiversity measurement standardised approach for business
More information on the survey and Align can be found on the EU B@B Platform’s website.
Align is funded by the European Commission and led by WCMC Europe, the Capitals Coalition, Arcadis, ICF and UNEP-WCMC.
Members of the Align community are joining as individuals and are not representing their organisation. In this regard, respondents should aim to answer from one perspective which represents their current experience and views.
