In the second feature looking at our the It’s Now for Nature Accelerator, we take an in-depth look at what the companies – and the hosts – gain from taking part.  

A growing number of businesses are acknowledging the importance of nature, from providing critical ecosystem services clean water and fertile soils, to supplying vital natural resources and buffering against risks like flooding. Some are now developing nature strategies that recognize these roles on a voluntary basis, while others are responding to specific legislation, such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). Together this has seen the concept of nature, and the vital role it plays for all businesses, move higher up the corporate agenda.  

The pivotal role of host partners in setting up Accelerators 

Eight Accelerators are currently being hosted by partner organizations, covering a range of sectors, countries and businesses at differing points on their nature journeys. 

Each Accelerator program sets out to teach companies the skills they need to develop and publish a nature strategy that is aligned with the targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework. This includes signposting to the relevant frameworks to guide identifying material, nature-related dependencies, impacts risks and opportunities, and setting SMART targets to address them. 

And while hosts play a number of key roles, such as educating and awareness raising, according to Alinde Bensdorp from MVO Nederland: “the most important thing is that we help businesses to get started, because that is the most complicated part for them. 

“For most businesses, developing a nature strategy is a completely new concept. 

They are often motivated to do something about biodiversity and their own impacts and dependencies but then find it incredibly complicated and are often unsure where to start.” 

It’s something that the World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s (WBCSD) Nadine McCormick has seen, too. “More advanced companies have had approaches on biodiversity or related topics such as water use or plastic pollution in place for years. By broadening the theme towards nature, companies can systemically and holistically consider avoiding and reducing their main drivers of nature loss as well as consider ways to restore nature and transform the broader systems in which they operate,” she says. 

“What is being orchestrated is a massive change agenda. The huge potential of the Accelerator is about getting to hubs and groups of companies, empowering them, and then watching the ripple effect” she adds. 

Nature is no longer just a side issue  

Bart Corijn from the Biodiversity Shift believes that as terms such as ‘biodiversity loss’ and ‘eco-system services’ have become more commonly used within the context of business, meaning nature is no longer just an issue for sustainability teams. 

Belgium has a strong agri-food sector, he explains, but much of the country is now considered water-stressed and at risk of drought. The impacts of the climate crisis and biodiversity loss now threaten to hit productivity, with one participant of the Biodiversity Shift’s Accelerator noticing up to 20% loss in yields for their production as a result of climate change and biodiversity loss.  Corijn says: “so it’s not only the chief sustainability officers and sustainability teams that get nervous when confronted with these sorts of figures, it’s the CFO and finance departments, too. 

“People have the mindset that we need to get a grip of this, and they know that if nature is strong, so is their business.” 

While most participants of the Accelerators are sustainability practitioners, the MVO program invites two additional people from the participating business to attend, explains Bensdorp: “We want to encourage them to bring colleagues to relevant sessions, such as someone from communications, procurement, or perhaps finance.” 

The idea is that this will help sustainability managers to align more people in the company to the importance of nature, and ground the whole organization in the importance of nature to the business. 

To build their nature strategies, companies are learning from each other  

MVO Nederland’s Accelerator also includes two break-out sessions as part of every day-long workshop, continues Bensdorp, so participants have time to discuss what they are learning and implementing. “From the feedback we’ve had, they are really learning from each other,” she says. “They are telling us how refreshing it is to hear the views and the learnings of people from different sectors and then relating these ideas to their own business.”  

It’s something that McCormick has heard, too. “They are discovering that other people have the same problems and the same concerns, even though they were often from entirely different types of businesses,” she says. 

As one of WBCSD’s participants, a European-based consumer goods company, told her: “we are looking forward to sharing and overcoming challenges and feel confident in how we share internally and externally.” 

Bensdorp agrees and believes that by providing companies with the right environment and a safe space to talk, there is a willingness to share problems and ideas. “I’ve seen competitors speak very openly to each other, and I think that’s great,” she says. “Sustainability managers are happy to share, because if something works for their company it might help a competitor as well, and in the long run, we all want a healthier planet.” 

But being a nature champion in a business can be a tough role, says McCormick: “They are at the forefront of major change and quite often they simply want reassurance that they are doing the right thing.” 

This is something that WWF’s Ghyselinck recognizes, too. “One participant told me that when you start it’s a daunting landscape of acronyms and methodologies, and it’s really hard to see how you are ever going to create a nature strategy. 

So, it can be very inspirational to talk to your peers and companies from other sectors, it gives people confidence, and shows them that others maybe struggling, too.” 

Hosting can gain valuable insights into business thinking  

The Accelerators offer hosts an opportunity to learn about the companies they work with and represent, too.  “What we are discovering is that biodiversity is not seen as a material topic by lots of Dutch companies,” explains Bensdorp. It’s an important insight, she says: “We want to change that and ensure that our network is active and really investigating such an important topic; we want to inspire them to take action.” 

For McCormick: “It’s not a box ticking exercise, we want to help companies look at how they are going to implement a nature strategy. It isn’t just a nice to have, there are going to be opportunities and benefits that come from this.” 

For companies developing a nature strategy, the Accelerators are providing the impetus they need, both in terms of expert advice but also in the camaraderie of working with liked-minded professionals to solve shared problems.   

Plans are already underway to launch a new series of Accelerators in 2026, and any partners interested in becoming a host, or companies that want to take their nature strategy to the next level, can contact Business for Nature for more information.