Business Impact: Driving biodiversity recovery through business action

Join us for an inspiring evening immediately following IPBES-12 Stakeholder Day.

This event will bring together business leaders, sustainability professionals, and key stakeholders who will translate scientific evidence into concrete action for nature.

Why attend?

The Business and Biodiversity Assessment is the first major global scientific framework examining how businesses depend on and impact nature. It provides an unprecedented opportunity. This evening is your chance to move from awareness to action.

You'll have the opportunity to:

• Hear directly from an IPBES author on what the science tells us about business and nature
• Learn from leading businesses who are pioneering biodiversity commitments
• Connect with CEOs, sustainability directors, investors, and conservation leaders
• Share challenges and discover practical solutions with peers
• Make bold commitments that will drive real change

Who should attend

Corporate executives, sustainability directors, finance and ESG leads, supply chain leaders, academics, policy representatives, and anyone committed to making nature-positive business the norm.

Networking drinks and refreshments available before and after the event.

Speakers include:

Katie-Jo Luxton

Katie-Jo Luxton is Executive Director of Global Conservation at the RSPB, leading the organisations work to tackle the nature and climate emergencies through species conservation, habitat protection, and landscape-scale restoration.

She leads evidence-based advocacy and cross-sector collaboration across priority areas including farming and land management, the energy transition and the new legal and financial frameworks needed to enable nature recovery.

Working with partnerships across government, industry, and land management, the RSPB delivers landscape-scale nature recovery and nature-based solutions to tackle climate change, restore threatened habitats and species and build ecological resilience in the UK and internationally.

Dr Mark Johnston

Mark is Chair and Director of the UK Business & Biodiversity Forum CIC.  An ecologist by background and training with more than 35 years’ experience in this field.  Mark in his day job is the Senior Sustainability Manager (Biodiversity) in the sustainability team at bp plc, as well as lead authors for the IPBES methodological assessment of the impact of businesses on biodiversity and board member of the Tandem Global/Wildlife Habitat Council.

Previously Mark was Senior Lecturer in Biodiversity at the University of the West of England, Bristol, and Associate Director at Mott MacDonald. Has an MBA from the Open University and BSc(Hons) and Phd from Imperial College, London.

Dr Tom Burditt

Tom has been the Chief Executive of the Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside for 5 years. He represents the Northern Wildlife Trusts on the Nature North Board, is on the Great North Bog Board and sponsors the Green Northern Connections Investable Proposition (working to secure nature investment in partnership with the region’s linear infrastructure providers).

Tom is also a founder-director of the Greater Manchester Environment Trust, Chair of the Our Future Coast (developing nature-based solution pilots on the North West coast), a Trustee of the grant-giving Halpin Trust and a Trustee of Morecambe Bay Partnership, where he lives.

He has previously worked his way up from practical land management roles within Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust and National Trust, including stints as Reserve Officer, Lead Ranger and General Manager.

More speakers for the event will be added at a later date.