Making the NRF work for business and the environment

This briefing from the Aldersgate Group sets out the case for a strategic approach to nature and development and considers the role the NRF can play as part of delivering this, including potential risks or unintended consequences. It is informed by a workshop and insights from the Aldersgate Group’s cross-sectoral membership, a politically impartial alliance of businesses, academic and civil society organisations, which champions action for an environmentally sustainable economy.

After engagement with Aldersgate Group members, our recommendations call on the government to set out a clear roadmap for implementation of the Nature Restoration Fund, to deliver a genuine step change in ambition for nature in the built environment sector, and to only use the novel Environmental Delivery Plans (EDP) where it is ecologically effective and appropriate.

Additionally, this briefing calls for:

• The government to set out how the NRF will work with and interact with the private sector and nature credit markets,
• Administrators of the NRF to embrace a culture of continuous learning, which will require cultural change at the relevant authorities,
• Appropriate and effective governance structures, resources, digital and data infrastructure and partnerships, and
• That public investment and policy clarity must continue to crowd-in investment to meet national targets.