The Business of Biodiversity

About this book

These days, the business and sustainability agenda is fast-moving. Business finds itself absolutely on the front line of the battle being waged between humankind (as the dominant species on the planet) and the rest of the living systems and creatures with which we share the planet. This will be seen in retrospect as a collective aberration of monstrous proportions (we are, in effect, making war on ourselves), but it is taking us a very long time indeed to wake up to the consequences of this aberration. The Business of Biodiversity nails that mis-prioritisation with splendid eloquence. Once business people come to see that biodiversity still represents the primary resource for all our business activities, then the business case for embedding biodiversity right at the heart of corporate strategy grows stronger by the day. By the same token, the societal case for putting biodiversity at the top of the agenda rather than treating it as an irritating afterthought becomes overwhelming.

Contents

Part I: Biodiversity basics - What is biodiversity?
- Why does biodiversity matter?
- Biodiversity and business
- Benefits and burdens

Part II: Biodiversity and business - People and nature
- The business of business
- Biodiversity and sustainable development
- The changing business agenda

Part III: Beyond the limits - Biodiversity pushed too far
- All at sea
- Felling our future
- Breaking ground
- Liquid assets
- Biodiversity in the balance
- Changing course

Part IV Acting for biodiversity - So what can I do?
- Business close to biodiversity
- One step removed
- More distant from nature
- Empowering people and nature
- From action to strategy

Part V Biodiversity and strategy - The business of biodiversity
- The business of sustainability
- Restoration

Customer Reviews

Biography

Mark Everard is a Visiting Research Fellow, Faculty of Environment and Technology, University of the West of England. Well known in his field, he has an active consultancy, including advising governments on sustainability issues, and works with the Environment Agency in the UK. Aregular conference contributor and writer of magazine pieces, he is also the author of The Little Book of Little Fishes, PVC: Reaching for Sustainability, The Complete Book of the Roach, and Water Meadows: Living Treasures in the English Landscape. He is Chair-Elect and a Fellow of the Institution of Environmental Sciences, a Fellow of the Linnean Society, a chartered member of the Society for the Environment.