Germany's Business and Biodiversity Initiative

Business and Biodiversity Initiative at the UN Conference on Biological Diversity (CoP 9) in Bonn

Detailed profiles of all the businesses participating in the initiative can be found at www.gtz.de/en.

Aims of the Business and Biodiversity Initiative

The Federal Environment Ministry (BMU) commissioned the technical cooperation agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit GTZ to press ahead with the Business and Biodiversity Initiative. The aim of this initiative is to involve the private sector more closely in achievingthe CBD objectives, through

• active participation of companies and their organisations in the UN meeting
• voluntary commitments by companies, consortiums and sectors regarding concrete contributions to the objectives of the Convention
• presentation at the meeting of outstanding examples of specific commitments by companies or consortiums to the global public.

By signing a leadership declaration industry will be visibly involved in supporting the Convention's objectives. The goal is to win over companies from all sectors to greater commitment and concrete activities. Different sectors require different concepts and approaches, and some companies have more experience than others in dealing with biodiversity. We are not looking for the perfect company, but companies which are willing to join in a process and make biodiversity targets part of their company goals.

The companies can individualise the seven points of the leadership declaration by fleshing out the points with their own goals and measures.

Benefits for companies which join the initiative:

• high media coverage before an international public
• participation in fora and specialist events on the margins of the UN meeting
• ceremonial signing of the leadership declaration
• PR activities in the framework of the meeting (e.g. press discussions)
• documentation of case studies
• first hand information through direct contact to politicians, experts, NGOs and the press.