Connecting Nature Finance Understanding biodiversity credits and their role in a nature-positive future

Introduction

During this first session of Connecting Energies 2025: Civil Society Webinar Series, participants learnt how biodiversity credits are generated, traded and applied in practice, as well as the distinction between credits and offsets, challenges in scaling, and how these tools could link to wider policy frameworks, such as biodiversity net gain strategies or nature restoration laws. Importantly, the discussion also provided room to address key obstacles such as greenwashing concerns, verification gaps and the need for a common measurement framework.

With three speakers from the European Commission, the UK and Australia, we explored the EU’s ‘Roadmap towards Nature Credits’, and learnt from case studies of existing nature credit schemes, including aspects such as governance structures, monitoring requirements and opportunities for NGO engagement. Furthermore, we considered the potential implications of a nascent biodiversity credit market for grid and renewable energy infrastructure planning.

The session highlighted both the promise and the complexity of biodiversity credits as a tool for channelling private sector investment into nature-positive action. Speakers agreed that integrity, transparency, and robust measurement frameworks were critical for credibility and scalability. The discussion underscored the potential role of biodiversity credits in complementing carbon markets, while also pointing to the challenges of additionality, permanence and scheme comparability. Overall, the webinar provided a clear sense of both the opportunities and the hurdles ahead, leaving participants with a deeper understanding of how biodiversity credits might contribute to conservation, restoration and sustainable infrastructure development.