RT Report
T1 State of Finance for Nature: Tripling Investments in Nature-based Solutions by 2030
A1 United Nations Environment Programme, 
A1 World Economic Forum, 
A1 Economics of Land Degradation Initiative, 
A2 Mulder, Ivo
A2 Blin, Aurelia
A2 Adams, Justin
A2 Hartmann, Teresa
A2 Carreira, Danielle
A2 Schauer, Mark
A2 Ederer, Waltraud
A2 Smale, Robin
A2 Salazar, Mateo
A2 Simonetti, Marta
K1 nature-based solution
K1 land degradation
K1 natural capital
K1 environmental financing
K1 capital investment
K1 finance
SN 978-92-807-3865-0
YR 2021
FD 2021
LK https://wedocs.unep.org/handle/20.500.11822/36145
UL https://wedocs.unep.org/handle/20.500.11822/36145
NO The main purpose of the report is to provide up-to-date information about public and private sector finance that is channelled to activities and assets that can be considered NbS and to present estimates of the future needs. This Report complements the vast array of existing literature and processes that monitor specific flows of environment or development finance, such as those established under the three Rio Conventions (CBD, UNCCD, UNFCCC), under the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), as well as other multi-partner platforms (e.g. Climate Policy Initiative, Aid Data, IATI) or private sector initiatives (e.g. Bloomberg,Thomson Reuters). This report estimates existing public and private investment directed to NbS and estimates the size of the gap relative to the investment rate needed in coming decades. Section 2 estimates current NbS investment. Section 3 estimates future investment needs to meet societal objectives and shows the gap. Section 4 lays out evidence and hypotheses that explain current levels of underinvestment and identifies opportunities to scale up NbS. Section 5 concludes, sets out recommendations and proposes a way forward. Throughout the report, there are a number of case studies that have been collected from the literature and through a call for projects that the project team put out. Case studies showcase opportunities for both the public and private sectors. The participating organizations foresee this report becoming an annual publication. Producing the report annually will show trends in public and private investment related to NbS and it will help decision-makers assess how on track the world is to meet international commitments related to biodiversity, climate change and land degradation.
DS UN Environment Document Repository
RD Sep 19, 2026