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Journal Article

Challenges and pathways for matching corporate value‐chain biodiversity losses and gains

Margaux Durand; Thomas B. White; Talitha Bromwich; Sophus O. S. E. zu Ermgassen; Vincent Martinet
Conservation Biology · Vol. 40, Issue 3 · 2026

Abstract

In the context of ambitious global biodiversity goals, the need to compensate for the impact of corporate activities is no longer restricted to direct impacts but extends to the entire value chain of corporations. This is challenging, considering the substantial uncertainties involved in measuring corporate value‐chain biodiversity losses and gains, which render their comparison difficult. Corporations run the risk of taking inadequate action and making compensatory statements that are not supported by equivalent losses and gains, potentially exacerbating loss of biodiversity, instead of supporting its recovery, and exposing companies to operational, regulatory, market, reputational, and financial risks. We considered the sources of uncertainty that hinder the accuracy of corporate biodiversity impact measurements (limited data, complex value chains, assumptions in calculation methods and models, imperfect matching of metrics and reality, lack of counterfactuals). We also considered approaches that can be used to match loss and gain metrics: measureing both with a unique metric, conversing between metrics, and monetary valuation. We then devised a framework that represents the risk of making inappropriate statements depending on the level of uncertainty of measured value‐chain biodiversity impacts to help corporations in making more credible claims.

Bibliographic Information

JournalConservation Biology
PublisherWiley
Publication Date2026-06-01
Publication Year2026
Volume40
Issue3
Document TypeJournal Article
Print ISSN0888-8892
eISSN1523-1739
DOI10.1111/cobi.70221
SubjectConservation Science

Access Information

NARA Access Coverage1997-01-01~Current
Journal Homepagehttps://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/loi/15231739
Publisher PageOpen Publisher Page
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