Keynote speech at the Nature Event organized by University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL)

Deutsche Bank office, New York City

Distinguished speakers and guests, ladies and gentlemen, a very good morning to you all.

I would like to thank Ms Woodburn for her invitation, the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership and Corporate Leaders Group Europe for co-organising this event, and Deutsche Bank for hosting us.

Climate change tends to steal the headlines. It's easy to join the dots, to make the link between cause and effect.

But what we face is a triple ecological crisis. Climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution seem to be three separate issues, but they are interconnected. Each one makes the others worse, in the longer and the shorter term.

They must therefore be addressed together: we can't solve climate change without restoring nature. We can't restore nature if we continue to pollute. And when we pollute and degrade ecosystems, we exacerbate climate change.

The stories we read every day now are about droughts and floods, wildfires and soil degradation. Polluted seas that are overexploited and becoming more acidic. They are all about the toxic legacy that we are leaving to our children.

But we're here today because we know that we can tell other stories.

There are solutions, there are better choices, there are paths we can choose to take.

Forests are one clear example. Science shows us that biodiverse forests are more productive. They absorb and store more carbon, they deliver more of the ecosystem service we need for climate adaptation.

The same goes for wetlands and peatlands. They can contain more carbon per square meter than tropical forests. They also act as sponges, reducing the impacts of droughts and floods. Both wetlands and peatlands have decreased significantly in recent decades – but we can bring them back.

The word we need to hear again and again, the story the world needs to hear, is restoration.

Restoring degraded and overexploited ecosystems is an insurance policy. Insurance not just for the long-term sustainability of productive systems, but for their resilience as well.

Restoration for nature means restoration for us. It means using nature to cool cities and towns, mitigating the impact of heatwaves. Restoring wetlands and floodplains is good news for nature – but above all, it's crucial for disaster risk prevention, and helping us avoid droughts and floods.

It's vital for mitigating climate change. We cannot reach climate neutrality unless we increase our carbon sinks, starting with natural ecosystems.

And it is essential for safeguarding our food, our wood, and our water. If we want the bioeconomy flourish, we have to invest in nature.

Restoration is not about nature for nature's sake. It's about us. About what we have to do to continue our activities, to protect the living foundation of our society.

It's about safeguarding the foundation of our economy.

The need for restoration is blindingly clear.

In Europe, our nature is in alarming decline. More than 80% of our habitats are in poor condition.

But the story needs to be about reversing that decline.

That's why we've proposed a new law, the first of its kind. The Nature Restoration Law is a concerted effort to make good the damage across the whole continent. It sets binding targets to restore degraded ecosystems, prioritising areas with the highest potential for climate action.

It's intrinsically connected to the European Climate Law and the EU commitment to reach climate neutrality by 2050, delivering a climate-resilient society by 2050.

The proposal aims to restore ecosystems, habitats and species across 20% of EU land areas and 20% of EU sea areas by 2030, and all areas in need of restoration by 2030.

In recent months, hundreds of scientists, NGOs and business organisations (including central banks and other financial entities, food sector, extractive industries, renewable energy, and many others) have written in support of the Law.

They get it. They understand the urgent need to address the climate and biodiversity crises together. They see how everyone, business included, will gain from healthier ecosystems.

They have provided concrete examples of how investments in sustainable agriculture, forestry and fisheries, as well as renewable energy can be planned in combination with restoration on land and at sea.

Those benefits are huge.

According to our calculations, restoring protected EU habitats brings gains in the order of 1 860 billion euro, for an outlay of only 154 billion. That's a benefit to cost ratio of over 12:1.

It would be mad to refuse.

But we have to proceed with care.

The process involves national restoration plans. They have to be prepared in an inclusive manner. They must be open and effective. The general public and all stakeholders must take part at an early stage, drawing up plans that will work on the ground.

So far, I've been concentrating on the domestic benefits, but the international implications are significant as well.

With the Nature Restoration Law, we will not only meet our obligations under the Global Biodiversity Framework, we're also showing the world how these obligations can be met in a manner that's reasonable, ambitious and inclusive.

The Global Biodiversity Framework complements the Paris Agreement, and both need to be implemented in full. Taken together, they form a global roadmap towards a truly sustainable economy and truly sustainable development. Delivering that means delivering transformative change for our societies and our economies in the timeframe required.

To be clear, we do not have time on our side.

Implementing the Global Biodiversity Framework will take active engagement from governments and across societies. It means mobilising resources from all sources. That means significant efforts and bold leadership. Because this is not a menu where you pick and choose – it has to be implemented in full.

With the European Green Deal, and in particular the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, the EU has a good basis for implementing the Global Biodiversity Framework.

But we need much more than a basis.

What we need is a law, and what we have for the moment is just a proposal.

To get from the one to the other, we need the European Parliament and the Council to deal with these legislative procedures as swiftly as possible.

The Corporate Leaders Group Europe has been very supportive of the Nature Restoration Law throughout the process so far, including through the work of Business for Nature.

I have no doubt that when the Environment Council agreed on a General Approach on 20 June, and when the European Parliament voted in favour of the Nature Restoration Law on 12 July, it was in part thanks to your support.

And now, the critical moment is approaching.

In the coming weeks, the Commission will continue to work with the Council and the Parliament to reach an ambitious, coherent and implementable agreement. An agreement that protects the essential elements of the original proposal and responds to the expectations of stakeholders and citizens across the continent.

Reaching an agreement will send a vital signal to citizens, businesses, and the world at large. It will show Europe treating its international commitments on climate and biodiversity with the seriousness they deserve. It will show a Europe determined to lead on the global stage.

Ladies and gentlemen, your support so far has been essential.

And as we enter these final stages, I very much hope that support will continue. We need to maintain the pressure on the Council and the Parliament, and work towards an agreement that is balanced and ambitious.

That is the story we need to tell.

A story of hope and prosperity. The story of a realistic plan that addresses that triple crisis. Of a plan that will deliver.

Thank you.