Podcast: Economic Factors Underlying Biodiversity Loss with Partha Dasgupta, Simon Levin, and Georg Kell by Martin Reeves

• Biodiversity is the variety and richness of life on Earth, and it is essential for our survival and well-being. However, biodiversity is under unprecedented threat from human activities, such as land use change, overexploitation, pollution, and climate change. In this podcast, you will hear from three experts who have been involved in the Dasgupta Review, a groundbreaking report that examines the economic factors underlying biodiversity loss and proposes a new framework for valuing and managing nature.
• If you want to learn more about the Dasgupta Review and its implications for the future of humanity and nature, you should listen to this podcast. You will gain a deeper understanding of the economic and ecological interdependence between humans and the natural world, and the need for a fundamental transformation of our economic system and institutions to ensure the sustainability and resilience of both.

Recommendation

Gross domestic product – GDP – tracks the output of an economy. But relying on this sole data point ignores the negative aspects of that output on the environment. In this illuminating Boston Consulting Group podcast, host Martin Reeves interviews economists and sustainability experts Sir Partha Dasgupta, Simon Levin and Georg Kell. Their discussion centers on how economic activity threatens the global ecosystem and biodiversity. Business leaders will find this an authoritative examination of the linkage between environmental and economic vibrancy.

Take-Aways

• Global efforts to increase GDP have ignored the risk of environmental degradation through climate change and biodiversity loss.
• Businesses must prioritize the protection of natural assets to drive long-term economic activity and performance.
• Valuing natural goods and services proves an important component in determining “inclusive wealth.”

Summary

Global efforts to increase GDP have ignored the risk of environmental degradation through climate change and biodiversity loss.

Global stakeholders are increasingly recognizing the critical importance of advancing sustainability efforts and mitigating climate change effects. Governments and stakeholders must arrest the damage to natural biodiversity. Economic activity since the Industrial Age has caused serious environmental degradation – in particular the loss of species, ecosystems and natural resources. Throughout history, economic development has not recognized, nor assessed, its negative impact on the environment. Economists have long used one measuring stick of progress: the growth of gross domestic product – GDP.

“You could have an economy that is growing in GDP, and you think all is well, but the unmeasured depreciation of natural capital would be unrecorded. We have the wrong measure.”

Because GDP doesn’t account for the loss of natural assets, it proves inadequate to properly account for economic progress. When sustainability professionals discuss natural assets, the two main components they raise are “natural goods and natural services.” These include throughputs derived from nature, including “food, fiber, fuel and pharmaceuticals.”

Measuring the financial value of natural goods and services is a new and problematic concept. But identifying this value is an important step in protecting biodiversity, and it’s crucial for businesses: The United Nations says that natural services spur roughly half of all commercial activity.

Businesses must prioritize the protection of natural assets to drive long-term economic activity and performance.

While the business adoption of this concept is currently tepid, there are exceptions, including in the realms of water stewardship and carbon-emissions reduction. Approximately 3,000 corporations have engaged in efforts to attain a net-zero carbon footprint.

“The pattern of economic development has been anti-nature, essentially regarded as a free good, and she is not.”

Experts point to environmental damage so severe that the planet may not be able to recover from it. However, debate continues on whether humanity has passed this tipping point. Observable phenomenon in the destruction of localized ecosystems could portend catastrophic consequences globally.

Valuing natural goods and services proves an important component in determining “inclusive wealth.”

Economists now champion the concept of inclusive wealth for nations, defined as the computable value and “social worth” of all natural, human and produced capital of an exclusive state system.

“Produced capital has been increasing, human capital has been increasing, but natural capital has been degrading.”

To mitigate the negative effects of climate change and biodiversity loss, business and government leaders have to recognize that a robust economy depends on a healthy and sustainable environment. Central to this endeavor is cooperation between public and private sectors in developing pragmatic solutions to address climate change and biodiversity loss.

This is a massive global undertaking that sovereign economies must undertake. The task is monumental. But the risks associated with not addressing environmental protection have awful consequences for all global citizens.

About the Podcast

Sir Partha Dasgupta is a professor emeritus of economics at the University of Cambridge. Simon Levin is a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at Princeton University and a recipient of the National Medal of Science. Georg Kell is the founding executive director of the United Nations Global Compact and chair of Arabesque Partners. Martin Reeves is chair of the BCG Henderson Institute.

Genres

Economics, Ecology, Environmental science, Sustainability, Policy, Ethics, Philosophy, Education, Business, Society.

Review

The podcast is a conversation between three eminent scholars who have contributed to the Dasgupta Review, a landmark report on the economics of biodiversity commissioned by the UK government. The podcast explores the main findings and recommendations of the report, which argues that humanity’s well-being depends on the health and diversity of the natural world, and that our current economic system fails to account for the true value of nature and the costs of its degradation. The podcast discusses how to measure and manage the natural capital that underpins our economy and society, how to align incentives and policies with the conservation and restoration of biodiversity, and how to foster global cooperation and collective action to address the biodiversity crisis.

The podcast is a stimulating and informative discussion that offers a rare opportunity to hear from the authors and advisors of the Dasgupta Review, one of the most comprehensive and influential reports on the economics of biodiversity ever produced. The podcast covers a wide range of topics and perspectives, from the philosophical and ethical foundations of the report, to the practical and policy implications of its proposals. The podcast is also accessible and engaging, as it uses clear and simple language, concrete examples, and personal stories to convey the complex and urgent issues at stake. The podcast is not only a summary of the report, but also a reflection on its challenges and opportunities, as well as a call for action and change.