Latest news with #NatureCredits
Forbes
01-08-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Nature Credits Show the Path to Market-Driven ProSocial AI
In July 2025, the European Union took a big step toward market-driven environmental restoration with the launch of its Roadmap towards Nature Credits. The initiative could not only shift how society thinks about climate change but also fundamentally reshape how we approach prosocial artificial intelligence and its role in addressing global challenges. Why? Understanding The EU Nature Credits Framework The EU's nature credits roadmap creates quantifiable biodiversity certification units that reward those who actively contribute to ecosystem restoration and conservation, including farmers, foresters, fishers, landowners and local communities. This market-based mechanism complements public funding by creating financial incentives for nature-positive actions, with the ambitious goal of establishing a fully operational biodiversity market by 2027. What makes it particularly compelling is how it transforms environmental stewardship from a cost center into a value-generating activity. By creating tradable credits for measurable biodiversity improvements, the EU is essentially gamifying conservation, turning positive environmental impact into a competitive advantage. This is twice important in a geopolitical context in which the US is set to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement in January 2026, and plans to revoke the 2009 declaration, known as the endangerment finding, which concluded that planet-warming greenhouse gases pose a threat to public health. The Prosocial AI Connection The nature credits framework offers a fascinating parallel to the development of prosocial AI systems, AI systems which are tailored, trained, tested and targeted to bring out the best in and for people and planet. Just as the EU seeks to quantify and reward positive environmental outcomes, we need mechanisms to measure and incentivize AI systems that generate positive social impact. The parallels are intriguing: Quantifiable Impact: Nature credits require verifiable, measurable improvements to biodiversity. Similarly, prosocial AI systems need clear metrics for social benefit — whether that's reducing bias, improving accessibility, or enhancing community well-being. Market-Driven Innovation: By creating economic value around positive environmental outcomes, the EU is harnessing market forces for good. Prosocial AI could similarly benefit from frameworks that reward systems demonstrating genuine social benefit, perhaps through certification programs or priority access to computing resources. Stakeholder Engagement: The nature credits roadmap explicitly involves diverse stakeholders, from farmers to local communities. Prosocial AI development requires similar inclusive approaches, ensuring that affected communities have meaningful input into AI system design and deployment. Bridging Digital And Natural Ecosystems The EU's approach reveals something about modern challenges, which has always been true about society. Everything is connected within a continuum of constant change. Solutions and problems are part of an organically evolving kaleidoscope. In an increasingly hybrid setting, this is twice true. Whatever issue we are facing is the cause and consequence of interconnected systems that require systemic solutions. Consider how AI could accelerate the nature credits program itself. Machine learning algorithms could monitor biodiversity changes in real-time, automatically verify credit-worthy conservation actions, and optimize restoration strategies across vast landscapes. Conversely, the nature credits framework demonstrates principles that prosocial AI can adopt. The emphasis on transparency, measurable outcomes, and stakeholder inclusion creates a template for responsible technology development. The Commission's establishment of an expert group to mobilize expertise and share best practices mirrors the collaborative governance models that prosocial AI initiatives need. Criticisms On The Nature Credits Logic Not everyone embraces this market-driven approach. Friends of the Earth Europe warns of greenwashing whereby nature credits could become 'a political distraction that will weaken environmental regulation, undermine public investment and prioritise corporate profits over real ecological action'. These concerns echo debates in AI ethics about whether market mechanisms can truly align profit motives with social good. The key might be robust yet agile governance frameworks that prevent abuse while maintaining innovation incentives. For both nature credits and prosocial AI, this means strong oversight, transparent metrics and accountability mechanisms that ensure genuine positive impact rather than superficial compliance. Which ultimately comes back to human mindsets and the intentions, both personal and political, that drive agendas and action to implement them. A Vision For Integrated Impact? Imagine a future where AI systems optimizing supply chains automatically factor in nature credit implications, where machine learning models help communities identify the most impactful conservation opportunities, and where prosocial AI principles guide the technology platforms that will manage global biodiversity markets. This convergence is more than theory. The EU's commitment to allocating 10% of its 2026-27 budget to biodiversity while exploring innovative financing mechanisms demonstrates how traditional policy tools can evolve. Similarly, prosocial AI needs both dedicated resources and creative approaches that go beyond conventional regulatory frameworks. The nature credits roadmap also highlights the importance of timing and scale. Environmental challenges can't wait for perfect solutions, and neither can the social challenges that AI systems could help address. The EU's timeline — establishing expert groups by 2025 and operational markets by 2027 — shows how ambitious but achievable goals could drive rapid progress. Practical Implementation: The CREDITS Framework Drawing lessons from the EU's nature credits initiative, organizations developing prosocial AI systems can apply this practical framework: Certify measurable social impact through transparent, verifiable metrics — just as nature credits quantify biodiversity improvements, prosocial AI needs clear success indicators that stakeholders can trust and verify. Reward positive outcomes by creating economic incentives for socially beneficial AI development, whether through preferential procurement policies, tax incentives, or market advantages that make prosocial approaches profitable. Engage diverse stakeholders throughout the development process, ensuring that affected communities have meaningful input and that benefits are distributed equitably rather than concentrated among technology developers. Develop collaborative governance frameworks that bring together technical experts, community representatives, and policymakers to guide responsible development and prevent harmful applications. Integrate impact considerations into core business processes rather than treating social benefit as an add-on, making prosocial principles fundamental to system design and operation. Track long-term outcomes with the same rigor applied to financial performance, recognizing that genuine social impact often takes time to manifest and requires sustained commitment beyond initial deployment. Sustain efforts overtime. Healing the planet is not a quick fix – but the consequence of systemic, ongoing effort. The EU's nature credits program isn't just about biodiversity — it's about reimagining how we create positive change in complex systems. For prosocial AI, it offers a roadmap toward market-driven social benefits that could transform how we build and deploy intelligent systems. The question isn't whether we can afford to pursue prosocial AI, but whether we can afford not to.
Scoop
12-06-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Government Backs Voluntary Nature Credits
The Government is supporting the expansion of a voluntary credits nature market through the running of pilot projects across New Zealand. Establishing a market that is durable, measurable and transparent will help farmers, landowners, iwi, and conservation groups unlock new income streams for looking after nature on their land, Associate Minister for the Environment Andrew Hoggard announced today at Fieldays. 'We want to connect those caring for the land with investors who support conservation. Nature credit markets help fund trusted environmental projects that actively protect and restore ecosystems.' Mr Hoggard said international and domestic investors—including corporates, banks, and philanthropists—are seeking high-quality nature and carbon credits that meet global standards. The development of a nature credit market is important to investors and New Zealand's reputation. 'New Zealand companies spent millions on carbon and nature credits mainly offshore last year. With the right framework, we can keep more of that investment at home.' The Government moved quickly to repeal the previous Government's direction to Councils to identify and map Significant Natural Areas (SNA) by suspending parts of the National Policy Statement - Indigenous Biodiversity. 'Farmers and other private landowners are doing their part to protect native biodiversity and want to do more. Supporting voluntary natural credits markets is a chance for the Government to show them the carrot, not just the stick. Privately funded pilot projects are underway to test how nature credit markets can work in the New Zealand context. As part of these pilots, we will test the role for Government which may include setting principles, and a framework for standards, to build market confidence and ensure quality.' Further details on the Government's role and the design of the expanded market will be announced in the coming months. Information about voluntary nature credits market pilots The pilots represent different land conditions, locations, types of market participants, and activities. They will help the Government understand how to meet the high standards of international markets, the role of Government, and what works best in New Zealand. This real-life experience will provide valuable insights as we move to the next stage of market design. Te Toa Whenua Northland, led by Reconnecting Northland. Transitioning around 100 ha from exotic forestry to native including pest control on iwi-owned land. Waituna Nature Credits Prototype Southland, led by Whakamana te Waituna Charitable Trust (Awarua Rūnunga, Ngai Tahu, Fonterra, Southland District Council, Environment Southland, and Department of Conservation). Restoring 400 ha of farmland at lagoon margins to lowland forest & wetlands (RAMSAR protected site). Waimanu Forest Gisborne Led by Aratu Forests. Converting a commercial forestry block to 50 ha of natives for biodiversity uplift and increased recreational and educational values. Scope to expand to up to 5,000 ha. Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari insights Waikato, led by Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari. Observing the current process of issuing credits for conservation and protection activities within the 3,360 ha inland ecological sanctuary. Existing Biodiversity Credits Market (BCM) project standard insights Led by Ekos. Offering market insights from an existing BCM provider. Includes understanding the journey of Reconnecting Northland's proof-of-concept project through this process. Adapted nature credits international standards Led by Boffa Miskell. Testing at-place an additional NZ BCM project standard that is adapting UK methodology to NZ environments as a competitor to domestic or international project standard/certification providers. Voluntary carbon market standard with biodiversity safeguards insights Led by AsureQuality. Testing its carbon project standard, which requires native revegetation, designed to be more applicable and affordable for the New Zealand context. Nature positive credit programme pilot Led by Silver Fern Farms. Testing a processor-led programme for market attraction, and potentially third-party investment, in on-farm nature restoration and enhancement activities that support commercial 'nature positive' claims. Nature-based markets pilots for rural landowners Led by Pāmu Farms. Exploring pathways to make nature-based markets accessible to a range of New Zealand farmers and landholders.
