28 May 2026
ISEP joined His Majesty The King alongside Defra ministers, a No10 advisor, and senior business leaders for an industry and government roundtable at Windsor Castle last Friday to discuss how action on nature can deliver financial returns and support UK economy.
This came ahead of the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) launching the Boardroom Briefing for Nature, aiming to support UK businesses to save millions of pounds and unlock new growth opportunities by putting nature at the heart of boardroom decisions.
The resources include a short film featuring His Majesty and Sir David Attenborough, alongside the Boardroom Briefing on Nature tailored for Chairs and Non-Executive Directors outlining the scale of the opportunity, and a suite of cross-economy business case studies demonstrating where nature action has delivered material and financial benefits for business performance.
ISEP's Director of Policy and Public Affairs, Signe Norberg, attended the roundtable alongside the Council for Sustainable Business, the Green Finance Institute, and the Aldersgate Group, which developed the resources with Defra.
The materials highlight a clear and growing economic opportunity, with UK’s natural capital asset value estimated at around £1.6 trillion, alongside annual flow of ecosystem services estimated at £41 billion. It also reports that around 900 UK businesses in nature-related sectors raised £2.8 billion in 2025, supporting 21,000 jobs.
The film and case studies showcase real-world examples of businesses already benefiting from this approach. Severn Trent Water has restored degraded peatlands and woodlands in the Peak District, avoiding £18 million in sediment removal costs, saving up to £743,000 annually in chemical treatment, and postponing a major infrastructure upgrade from 2033 to at least 2047. At Canary Wharf, transforming an unused dock into a nature-rich public space – achieving a 55% biodiversity net gain - helped deliver the group’s strongest leasing performance in over a decade, with 450,000 square feet of office space signed since the project launched.
Signe Norberg said: “Nature is a material consideration for business and impacts the entire economy.
"We are delighted to be working with the Council for Sustainable Business and other partner organisations to mobilise businesses to take ambitious action in support of restoring nature.
"It is essential that nature positive action accelerates as it will reduce companies’ risks, create new economic opportunities and cut costs.”
Nature Minister Mary Creagh said: "More than half of global GDP depends on natural resources and ecosystem services so it is vital for businesses to move to nature-positive growth. An investment in nature protects the bottom line, ensures resilient supply chains and is what customers and investors now expect.
"These new resources provide the evidence and practical guidance corporate leaders need to make nature a strategic priority!"
The Board Room Briefing for Nature will be followed by practical guide for businesses – developed by ISEP and Aldersgate Group on behalf of Defra – set to be launched next week.
This guide will support boards to transform decision-making within a business by recognising how environmental degradation now poses material risks to business resilience, financial performance and long-term value creation. But also how to identify opportunities by adopting a full value chain perspective.
The guide will provide a practical framework to support boards in integrating environmental considerations into business strategy.
