The Capitals Coalition is a global collaboration transforming the way decisions are made by including the value provided by nature, people and society.
Davos, Switzerland, January 23 2020: Today, the Natural Capital Coalition and the Social & Human Capital Coalition have united as the Capitals Coalition.
The Capitals Coalition will work collaboratively to ensure that the value that flows from nature, society and people – as well as the economy – collectively inform public and private sector decision making.
Over the last several years the concept of natural capital has risen to the top of the international agenda. However, it is clear that without an integrated and systemic approach to address global environmental, social and economic challenges, we will not catalyse the transformative change that is needed to ensure the health of the natural world, and to safeguard human health, wealth, happiness and identity.
During the ‘2020 Super Year’ world leaders will meet to agree on new and ambitious targets for biodiversity and climate, and to measure progress against the Sustainable Development Goals, including social and economic targets. It’s increasingly clear that natural, social and economic issues are fundamentally interconnected, and that if we are to succeed in delivering a stable and resilient future they must be addressed together as parts within an integrated system.
This systemic approach is embedded in the Capitals Coalition, which unites over 350 organizations, and engages many thousands more, who together represent all parts of society and span the global economy.
A capitals approach provides decision makers with a lens to identify these connections, to contextualise non-financial information for organizations, and to understand where there are synergies, trade-offs and opportunities to generate value for multiple stakeholders.
By working collaboratively with our extensive community, and by harmonizing the existing approaches to capitals thinking and practice, the Capitals Coalition will bring them to scale, package them for use by businesses and governments, and provide a pre-competitive space for multi-stakeholder collaboration.
The Natural and the Social and Human Capital Coalitions have demonstrated that it is possible to enhance natural, social, human and financial capital through more informed decision making in business and government. Both have harmonized global guidance into internationally accepted and standardized frameworks in the form of the Natural Capital Protocol and the Social & Human Capital Protocol.
Each Coalition convenes a community of international leaders, recognised experts, innovators and respected practitioners. They come together in a pre-competitive space because they believe that the Coalitions are vehicles that can drive the global conversation and deliver desperately needed systemic change.
The united Capitals Coalition will accelerate momentum, leverage success, connect powerful and engaged communities, and identify the areas, projects and partnerships where we can collectively deliver benefits for nature, people and the economy.
Of the 350+ organizations officially affiliated with the Capitals Coalition, 30 have stepped forward as Strategic Partners [see Annex 1]. These partners have been selected for their leadership, for their expertise and influence, and for their ability to achieve impact at scale. Collectively they represent business, finance, policy, science and academia, standard setting, membership organizations and civil society, and they will play a pivotal role in guiding the Coalition in its mission to bring nature and people into the heart of decision making.
[ENDS]
Mark Gough, CEO, Capitals Coalition said: “The natural world, people, society, and the economy are innately connected. When they are addressed in isolation, benefits can be delivered to parts of the system. But, when addressed together, they can transform the way that we make decisions, and put us on the path to a stable and resilient future where people and nature thrive in harmony with one another.”
Quotes from Capitals Coalition Strategic Partners:
“Solving the twin crises of climate breakdown and nature loss, and delivering inclusive and sustainable development, requires global system change that properly integrates interconnected natural, social, human and economic capitals in all our decision-making. The Capitals Coalition’s broad community and collaborative approach will help catalyse the innovation and partnerships we need to accelerate positive change and ensure prosperity for all on a healthy planet.” – Marco Lambertini, Director General, WWF International
“The Capitals Coalition will serve an essential purpose in accelerating decision making to protect and enhance natural, social and human capital while also addressing economic challenges. A systemic approach will be required if we are to continue to accelerate economic development while safeguarding essential natural assets and enhancing social welfare across the world. Trucost and S&P Global provide essential sustainability intelligence to power the markets of the future and we are delighted to be a strategic partner of the Capital Coalition.” – Dr. Richard Mattison, CEO of Trucost, part of S&P Global.
“Measuring and valuing social, human and natural capital is a crucial component of any modern business strategy. As founding partners in both the Natural Capital Coalition and the Social & Human Capital Coalition, ERM is honored to continue our strategic support of “capitals thinking”. We look forward to growing the networks and supporting the adoption of the Capitals Coalition’s vision.” – Sabine Hoefnagel, Global Director, Services, Brand and Communications, ERM
“Sustainability is our strategy. In this way we want to have a positive influence on social themes such as climate change, the circular economy and social impact. We are looking forward to work closely with the Capitals Coalition in further developing and embedding natural, social and human capitals, as we have a strong belief in the relevance of the different capitals.” Richard Kooloos, Director Sustainable Banking, ABN AMRO.
“UNEP-WCMC are thrilled to be a strategic partner of the newly formed Capitals Coalition. Crossing disciplinary boundaries is a vital step for companies to design new business models which help tackle the nature and climate crises. We look forward to working with the Capitals Coalition to promote the consideration of natural capital, alongside social and human capital.” – Jonny Hughes Chief Executive Officer, WCMC, UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre.
“Shift is delighted to be a Strategic Partner of the Capitals Coalition. We look forward to working hand-in-hand to embed respect for human rights into the evaluation of human, social and relationship capitals. It is only by putting human dignity front and center that we can truly redress the gross inequalities in our societies. We are excited to work with the Coalition to advance smart management and accounting practices that help us build a sustainable world in which business gets done with respect for people’s dignity.” – Caroline Rees, President, Shift
“Long-term value creation requires considering all key stakeholders. The Capitals Coalition aims to provide the needed managerial concept for structuring pre-financial assets and resources.” Kileken ole-MoiYoi, Head Strategy Global Health & Corporate Responsibility, Novartis
“We all have an impact and depend on nature, people and communities. When we recognise the hidden value these things bring us, we can make more sustainable decisions. By looking at nature holistically and working together to address the challenges we all face, we’ll be successful while also fully respecting the limits of our planet.” Eva Zabey, Executive Director, Business for Nature
“Time is running out to safeguard the natural, social and human assets we rely on. The coming ten years is being called the decisive decade and 2020 the “Super Year” for action on climate change, biodiversity and a host of other sustainability issues. If we are serious about wanting a stable, equitable and prosperous future, then we must find ways to catalyse the transformative changes we need, integrating natural, social and human capital into all our decision making. We believe that the Capitals Coalition will play a vital role and we are proud to support them as a strategic partner“. Fiona Place, Associate Director, Anthesis
Annex 1. Strategic Partners:
Anthesis, ABN AMRO, Business for Nature, Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB), Center for Safety & Health Sustainability, Economics For The Environment Consultancy (eftec), ERM, Green Economy Coalition, Global Green Growth Initiative, IDEEA Group, Impact Management Project (IMP), Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Kering, Little Blue Research, L’Oreal, Natural Capital Project, Netherlands Water Partnership, Novartis, Olam, PwC, Shift, S&P Global, SustainValue, UN World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP WCMC), value balancing alliance (VBA), Wellbeing Economy Alliance, World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), WWF International, CEBDS.
NOTES TO EDITORS
Media Contact: Joseph Harris-Confino (Head of Communications, Capitals Coalition)
E: joseph.confino@capitalscoalition.org
About the Capitals Coalition
The Capitals Coalition (the Coalition) is a global collaboration transforming the way decisions are made by including the value provided by nature, people and society.
The Coalition unites the Natural Capital Coalition and the Social & Human Capital Coalition to accelerate momentum, leverage success, connect powerful and engaged communities, and identify the areas, projects and partnerships where we can collectively deliver benefits for nature, people and the economy.
The Coalition is a collaboration of over 350 of the world’s leading organizations from business, accountancy, science and academia, membership organizations, standard setting, finance, policy and civil society, who have united in a pre-competitive space because they believe that the Coalition is a vehicle that can drive the global conversation and deliver desperately needed systemic change by bringing nature and people into the heart of decision making.
