World Benchmarking Alliance (WBA)
Focus Area:
Data & Standards
Key Lever:
Assurance & pressures, Capacity & incentives, Community mobilization
Grant Region:
Global
Grant Country:
Global
Grant Start Year:
2021
Project name
Nature Benchmark – Accountability mechanism for the private sectors most influential companies
Project summary
The project benchmarked 500 keystone companies across sectors with the largest impacts on nature and biodiversity. It assessed impacts on land, oceans, and freshwater ecosystems, as well as the biodiversity they support. In Phase 1, the team developed a methodology based on the Science Based Targets for Nature (SBTN) framework.
As SBTN and global reporting standards evolved, the methodology aligned with frameworks such as the Value Reporting Foundation, GRI, CDP, TNFD, IFRS, and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards.
In Phase 2, the project applied this methodology to assess the 500 companies with the greatest impact on nature. It combined environmental analysis with WBA’s core social indicators to capture the human dimension alongside environmental performance.
The benchmark initially relied on company disclosures and aimed to incorporate third-party data, such as satellite information and land rights data, to strengthen the analysis.
The methodology, results, and underlying data were made publicly available.
