Tag Archive for: Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme

Webinar: Building a Nature-Positive Business

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This National Biodiversity Week, Business For Biodiversity Ireland invites you to our free lunchtime webinar, Building a Nature-Positive Business: Your Get-Started Guide, in collaboration with our partners at SustainabilityExamples.com.

In this 40-minute online briefing, you will gain insight on how to use our free online resources to swiftly build your biodiversity knowledge, make the business case for nature and begin integrating biodiversity into your decision-making, as our Technical & Research Lead Dr Emer Ní Dhúill talks you through the basics of our free online Discovery Track module, part of the BFBI Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme for Irish businesses.

Sustainability Examples CEO and co-founder Andrew Sheehan will also demonstrate how his innovative website can help you learn more from peers leading on sustainability and how to best showcase your organisation’s practical progress, while strengthening reputation and resilience and unlocking new business value. Register on eventbrite HERE 

When: Tuesday, May 19th, 2026, 12pm-12.40pm

Where: Online over Teams

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Who: Dr Emer Ní Dhúill – Technical & Research Lead at BFBI, Emer has qualifications in ecology, botany and horticulture and has had a long career as an ecologist surveying both rare and invasive plant species in Ireland. Having witnessed the negative impact of invasive species and certain land use practices on Ireland’s biodiversity, it pushed her to think more deeply about the biodiversity crisis, focusing on understanding what our impacts and dependencies on biodiversity are. Emer’s work with BFBI includes developing and delivering workshops for members on developing credible nature strategies. She also manages delivery of research projects to NGOs, government bodies and agencies with a focus on addressing nature-related DIROs (Dependencies, Impacts, Risks, Opportunities) due to business activities. 

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Andrew Sheehan – A qualified accountant in addition to having 15 years’ experience in senior marketing roles, Andrew recently launched the website initiative SustainabilityExamples.com. To-date, more than 100 companies across five countries are using it to share verified examples of climate action progress and nature positive impact.

Book your free ticket: HERE 

Assess: Moving into Action with our opening workshop

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Our first immersive Action Track workshop of 2026 was delivered by our new Business Programme Lead Caroline Cawley and BFBI Technical & Research Lead Dr Emer Ní Dhùill, supported by our Business Programme Advisor Dr Catherine Farrell, Asst Prof Nature & Business at Trinity College Dublin at the Deloitte Ireland HQ in Dublin on April 14.

The workshop, supported by Deloitte’s WorldClimate Team, covered how our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme (NSAP) businesses would begin to assess nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities (DIROs) as a step to building credible, future-proof, impact-focused nature strategies, that drive action for the benefit of biodiversity and nature. The NSAP is based on our global partners Business For Nature‘s ACT-D framework. The framework is a 4-part, iterative process to Assess, Commit, Transform and Disclose on your organisation’s relationship with nature.

In this opening workshop, we talked about scoping boundaries and identifying stakeholders, looking at a variety of examples from major organisations on how they are presenting the mapping of their value chains, and exchanging ideas on where the focus should be in a post-Omnibus era. Our businesses explored the options for their sectors and their particular business model, as they work toward the key output of this Track – a Double Materiality Assessment, by asking: “What is the extent of our value chain and who are the important voices in it?”

Caroline commented: “It’s a really exciting time to be working in the nature and sustainability space, as we support Irish businesses to start to understand how to map and measure their dependencies and impacts on nature.”

Thanks to our participating businesses including CIÉ Group’s Bus Éireann, Dublin Bus and Irish Rail, Dublin Airport Authority, Shannon Airport Group and Eirgrid for their diligent work with us and our supporters at Deloitte Ireland including Cáitlín Flanagan and Eimear Kelly, and  Sarah Kelly from the National Biodiversity Data Centre, and the National Parks & Wildlife Service.

Find out more about our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme HERE.

Events putting nature firmly on the ESG agenda

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It was a week which underlined how much nature has solidified its place on the business agenda alongside climate issues – with the inaugural Carbon & Nature Forum, a Nature Panel at the Business Post ESG & Sustainable Business Summit, BFBI as a finalist at the ESG Awards and our first Nature Strategy Accelerator workshop of the year.

Our Executive Director Dr Maria Fitzpatrick writes:

We launched into the second quarter of 2026 with a week of inspiring events that really brought home how much nature is now firmly on the business agenda alongside climate – kicking off on Tuesday, April 14th with our first in-person workshop of 2026 with this year’s first cohort of businesses for our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme’s Action Track Workshop #1, delivered in association with Deloitte’s WorldClimate Team at their HQ in Dublin.

The focus: getting practical and helping our member organisations identify what’s truly material for them when it comes to reporting and strategy. More on that in future, with two more workshops in the pipeline. Huge thanks to all who participated in an interactive day-long session, to the BFBI team and our new Business Programme Lead Caroline Cawley making her workshop lead debut, to our Business Programme Advisor Dr Catherine Farrell for her continued input into the 2026 programme and to our workshop delivery partners Deloitte Ireland’s Sustainability Leader Caítlín Flanagan for their ongoing support.

That same day, the first Carbon & Nature Forum at Trinity Business School, hosted by the fantastic BE IMPACTFUL team, brought together a powerhouse line-up, with Asst Prof of Business & Nature Dr Catherine Farrell joining the panel discussions. Huge thanks to Tom Popple, Orlaith Delargy, and Louise French for creating such a valuable space. It was one of those sessions you don’t want to leave (even when your calendar says otherwise). Looking forward to being part of what comes next.

The evening of nature and climate conversations continued at the Climate Heist in The Sugar Club with Climate Cocktail Club – an engaging and thought-provoking mix of music and conversation, featuring voices such as Lesley O’Connor and Aoife O’Leary, alongside inspiring examples of climate innovation and entrepreneurship. BFBI is delighted to get involved in the Climate Cocktail Club’s second annual Climate Carnival ‘From Siloes to Systems’ coming up in September so stay tuned and join the mailing list for more updates on registration and collaboration opportunities. See www.climatecocktailclub.org/events

Wednesday took us to the Business Post ESG and Sustainable Business Summit in Croke Park, moderated by broadcaster Philip Boucher-Hayes, where BFBI was proud to take the stage on the dedicated Nature Panel, with Caroline Cawley joining Bob Hamilton, CEO of Irish Trees Ltd, (valued members of our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme), Dr Siobhan McQuaid of GoNaturePositive!, Horizon Nua, Trinity College Dublin and Stewart Gee, of Climate KIC, and keynote speaker Anne Reaney of Rebalance Earth, sharing insights on how businesses are moving to a nature-positive way of working. Our team, including Research & Tech Lead Dr Emer Ní Dhúill and myself were on hand to chat to delegates at our BFBI exhibition stand. Another day of great discussions, strong engagement, and plenty of follow-ups already in motion.

We wrapped up the week on Thursday, April 16th, as finalists at the ESG Business & Finance Awards 2026 in the Biodiversity Leadership in Business category for the second year in a row. While it wasn’t our day, congratulations to Coillte on a well-deserved win. And a big thank you to Chartered Accountants Ireland and our Chair Susan Rossney for the warm hospitality and great conversations.

 

Also a big thankyou to our funders National Parks & Wildlife Service and to our associates in KPMG Ireland Sustainable Futures, the National Biodiversity Data Centre, Business in the Community Ireland, Natural Capital Ireland and SustainabilityExamples.com – and to everyone who has been involved in supporting our work helping Irish businesses to integrate biodiversity into business strategy to date.

It’s weeks like this that act as a reminder of just how much momentum is building around bringing nature into the boardroom. So many brilliant people, conversations and ideas – all contributing to what can sometimes feel like an uphill climb but one that’s absolutely worth it.

A strong reminder that progress happens through collaboration, persistence and showing up – again and again.

Ready to show up for nature? Sign up free today to our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme Discovery Track to access free resources & webinars and take our 10-step module to build your biodiversity knowledge – https://businessforbiodiversity.ie/how-it-all-works/

ESG Summit photos by Maura Hickey

Discover your business case for biodiversity – resource

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Have you explored our new and improved Discovery Track?

We recently repackaged our Discovery resources into 10 swift steps for an easy-to-follow introductory module for our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme for Irish businesses and sustainability teams. Aligned with international best practice and frameworks, with a Certificate of Completion, the foundational Discovery Track will help you to identify:

  • Key definitions, policies and legislation relevant to your business – and to your supply and value chain

  • Resources to help you to report on nature and begin to develop your nature-related strategy for greater business resilience

  • How to make a strong business case for nature in your organisation

Sign up free to Discovery Track if not already a member, or log to your members area to get started on your comprehensive 10-step module to solidify your foundational knowledge and get ready to apply it to future-proof your business. Register HERE.

Upon completion of the short self-paced Discovery Track, consider applying to progress to our 2026 Action Track – limited places available now.

To arrange a chat about the right option for your business, email manager@businessforbiodiversity.ie

Caroline Cawley is our new Business Programme Lead

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Business for Biodiversity Ireland is delighted to announce that Caroline Cawley will be taking over as our Business Programme Lead.

Caroline, who will be working with our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme member organisations as they progress through our workshop series for 2026, is a senior sustainability and circularity leader with over 15 years’ experience helping organisations embed sustainability, climate action, circularity, and nature considerations into core business strategy and decision-making.

She has worked across consumer electronics, telecommunications, and environmental services sectors, building and leading sustainability functions, developing materiality-led ESG strategies, targets and reporting frameworks, and delivering Net Zero roadmaps and decarbonisation programmes aligned with the Science-based Targets Initiative. Caroline is recognised for her ability to connect sustainability priorities with commercial outcomes, risk management and long-term value creation. She is also recognised as an expert in fostering circular cultures and ways of working in organisations.

Most recently, Caroline served as Head of Corporate Sustainability at Bang & Olufsen, where she established the company’s sustainability function and integrated circularity, product longevity and climate targets into corporate strategy, financing, governance and product development. She has also held a senior sustainability role with TDC Group in Denmark and with Liberty Global in the Netherlands, delivering commercially impactful initiatives in circular and sustainable product design, eco-packaging, supply chains and energy management.

Caroline holds an MBA from Rotterdam School of Management and an MSc in Environmental Science from Trinity College Dublin. She brings a strong business-led perspective to advancing a circular, low-carbon and nature-positive economy which will be a real asset to the delivery of our programme guiding Irish businesses to boost resilience with a strong nature strategy.

We are also pleased to announce that our previous programme lead Dr Catherine Farrell will be staying with us in the role of Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme Business Programme Advisor.

To begin your Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme with us, register for the introductory Discovery Track HERE.

Or contact ccawley@businessforbiodiversity.ie to discuss your business’ options for our advanced tracks.

Assess: Disclose nature impacts and dependencies

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BFBI Business Programme Lead Dr Catherine Farrell CIEEM, Assistant Professor in Business and Nature at Trinity College Dublin, writes on emerging nature-related disclosure requirements and how stakeholder engagement is a key process step in building collective understanding for business and nature, as workshopped with businesses in our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme, delivered in collaboration with the Deloitte WorldClimate team.

“It was a beautiful autumn day when our group met in the Deloitte offices in Dublin’s city centre for the last of our three Action Track workshops that focused on the assess phase of the ACT-D framework. In our first workshop, our keen focus was on building an understanding of our value chain – what we do, where – and how that impacts on nature and, importantly, how much we depend on nature.

Too often businesses are experiencing chinks in the flow of essential components of their supply chains due to a fault in a lengthy global chain, with many of those faults related to climate and biodiversity related risks. If we understand these aspects, we can begin to address ways (opportunities) to mitigate those risks.

The next step is to take a metaphorical LEAP (literally: Locate, Evaluate and Assess our impacts, dependencies, risks and opportunities, and then Prepare to report) and draw a map whereby we can begin a deeper dive and evaluate and assess those dependencies, risks and impacts.

But as we draw that map, we must take time to draw out what stakeholders matter, where, and why. Thanks to the Deloitte team for outlining key stages in a stakeholder engagement and communications plan. Stakeholder engagement isn’t just an option – it’s fundamental to being part of a global community, expressed through global and local links in our value chain.

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Under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosure (TNFD) and other guidance such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and ACT-D, (Assess/Commit/Transform/Disclose), stakeholder engagement is essential for a thorough Double Materiality Assessment process, and critical to any business’ local and global reputation. We were fortunate to have Janice Leonard of SAP Landscapes, above, a business in the next track up, Strategy, present her own journey through DMA and stakeholder engagement, bringing a real-world / learning-by-doing perspective. The SAP Landscapes journey is inspiring, and we all benefited from Janice’s insights, which included the need for steady dedication and the benefits of drawing on the Business for Biodiversity Ireland community within the Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme.

While there is a steep learning curve for many businesses in building awareness and understanding in relation to biodiversity and ecosystems, and the role business is poised to play in driving Nature Positive ambition, Business for Biodiversity Ireland is a reliable support to help businesses of every size and sector work through inter-connections and complexities.

Thanks to all our Action Track businesses for their generosity in sharing their own journeys and we look forward to working with you on the Strategic next phase. Thanks to SAP Landscapes, CIÉ, CIÉ Tours, Cloud Assist, Dublin Airport Authority, FuturEnergy Ireland, Irish Rail, Irish Trees, Scott Cawley Ltd, Shannon Airport, Trinity College Dublin and Watermark.

Dr Maria Fitzpatrick is our new Executive Director

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Business For Biodiversity Ireland is delighted to welcome Dr Maria Fitzpatrick as our new Executive Director.

Maria originally joined BFBI as our Business Development Manager and will continue to work closely with our business members as they embark on our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme.

Maria has a PhD in Freshwater Ecology, looking at Irish headwater streams, and worked as an Environmental Consultant before moving to London to work at Queen Mary University of London and then to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to build and head up the Research Funding Services for Kew Science.

She is Circular Economy trained with a CSRD professional qualification and blends scientific expertise, project, relationship management skills, and a keen understanding of the environmental challenges our world is facing to build compelling cases for change.

Maria said: “At BFBI our mission is to empower every business to incorporate nature into decision making – we do this by creating awareness and building capacity within the organisations that we work with, strengthening their understanding, building resilience and supporting change throughout their operations.”

Curious about joining the 2026 Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme for Irish businesses? Register for the free Discovery Track to learn more or contact Maria at manager@businessforbiodiversity.ie

Strategy Track Workshop 3: bringing it all together

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Following on from earlier Strategy Track workshops, where we focused on the key elements of what a Nature Ambition Statement is (and why every organisation should have one!) and how to set SMART nature targets, BFBI Business Programme Lead Dr Catherine Farrell CIEEM, Trinity College Dublin, writes on the final in-person workshop of 2025 for our businesses in this track where we outlined how to bring all the different components together.

In our first workshop of the year, we outlined the need for in-depth understanding of our business impacts and dependencies on nature, and importantly, where these occur along the business value chain. Armed with insights to our value chain and following the steady guidance of the ACT-D framework  (along with resources such as the WWF Corporate Nature Targets publication, and the Science Based Targets Network framework (with lots of great resources / videos), we began to think about targets.

But, exploring the idea of targets unlocks a whole suite of ensuant questions – should our targets be based on actions or outcomes; resources applied or timeline to get there; and which part of the value chain should we focus on?

Our advice? Stop, take a deep breath and focus on one impact to start with. What could we do to enhance biodiversity at our direct operations? Could we then look further and think about procurement of raw materials – could we set a target to work with our suppliers and collaborate to reduce impacts / drivers of biodiversity loss at source?

Once we start exploring and collaborating, the innovation begins. And innovation is what drives sustainable business forward, to future proof and avoid nature related risk.

The challenge then lies in monitoring and reporting: rather than re-invent wheels take a practical approach and measure what matters, where; and build from there. In our workshop, we explored natural capital accounting methods to build information – showing how knowledge of the stocks and flows help inform decision making and importantly transition planning. Checking how we communicate these targets relative to our Nature Ambition Statement will help to keep us on course.

The team at Business for Biodiversity Ireland extend their gratitude to the Sustainable Futures team at KPMG; thanks also to our hosts Bank Of Ireland, for looking after us at their Baggot Street Head Office. As previous, we followed the guidance for the accelerator programme for businesses set out by Business for Nature under the Commit phase of their ACT-D framework.

Join the Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme for 2026! Sign up on our site or contact our Business Development Manager Dr Maria Fitzpatrick to discuss the options for your business: manager@businessforbiodiversity.ie

 

 

‘Quick fix’ for companies on sustainability reporting

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The European Commission has adopted targeted “quick fix” amendments to the first set of European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). This is aimed at reducing the burden and increasing certainty for companies that had to start reporting for financial year 2024 (commonly referred to as “wave one” companies).

According to the current ESRS, companies reporting on financial year 2024 can omit information on, amongst other things, the anticipated financial effects of certain sustainability‑related risks. The “quick fix” amendment, which applies from financial year 2025, will allow them to omit that same information for financial years 2025 and 2026.

For financial years 2025 and 2026, wave one companies with more than 750 employees will benefit from most of the same phase-in provisions that currently apply to companies with up to 750 employees. A summary of the modifications can be found here.

Wave one companies were not captured by the “stop‑the‑clock” Directive, which delayed sustainability reporting requirements for companies that report from financial year 2025 and 2026 (so‑called “wave two” and “wave three” companies) by two years. This Directive was part of the Omnibus I package adopted by the Commission in February 2025.

The Commission is working on a broader revision of the ESRS, with the aim of substantially reducing the number of data requirements, clarifying provisions deemed unclear and improving consistency with other pieces of legislation. It is expected that this review will be completed by financial year 2027.

Despite the ongoing delays and simplifications at EU level, assessing and reporting on your organisation’s nature impacts is still a vital and urgent part of any organisation’s long-term strategy – ignoring your dependencies and impacts on nature means ignoring the potential risks, both financial and reputational, to your business as well as the physical risks that damaging and degrading nature does to our planet, society and to your business’s resilience and longevity.

You can be a leader in your field by tackling these issues now – we’ll show you where to start. Sign up to our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme today – join the Discovery Track for free to learn more – or contact our Business Development Manager Dr Maria Fitzpatrick for a chat on how to get started on a solid Nature Strategy for your organisation. We will be accepting new businesses to our Action and Strategy Tracks now ahead of our 2026 programme of workshops, peer learning and expert one-on-one guidance – email manager@businessforbiodiversity.ie

Good news! BFBI 2026 Track Memberships Now Open

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We are thrilled to announce the opening of memberships for our 2026 Action and Strategy Accelerator Tracks!

Starting in the summer of 2025, we will welcome new members to these cohorts of Irish businesses who are advancing along our Nature Strategy Accelerator Programme – providing a unique opportunity to evaluate your organisation’s readiness for a Double Materiality Assessment (on the Action Track) or to level up to craft a comprehensive Nature Strategy (Strategy Track).

New members will engage in a personalised assessment meeting with the BFBI team, receiving tailored guidance to bridge knowledge gaps and initiate impactful actions within your business.

In 2026, each track will feature three immersive full-day workshops, in collaboration with Deloitte‘s WorldClimate (Action) & KPMG Sustainable Futures (Strategy) Teams, and further personalised one-on-one calls as needed. Together, we’ll tackle key milestones, allowing each business to progress at a pace that aligns with their unique capacity and timelines.

BFBI is supported by National Parks & Wildlife Services. Find out more about the various Nature Strategy Accelerator tracks on our How It All Works page and get in touch with our Business Development Manager Dr Maria Fitzpatrick to discuss the options for your business, including grants aligned with our fees – email today manager@businessforbiodiversity.ie

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