Key Takeaways

The Global Biodiversity Framework commits governments to protect 30% of Earth's land and water by 2030—the minimum needed to counter climate change and biodiversity loss.
Large companies must monitor, assess, and disclose their biodiversity risks and impacts across their value chain by 2030 under Target 15.
Governments are already designating new protected areas, creating immediate regulatory and reputational risks for companies whose operations or supply chains overlap with these zones.

We recently returned from the International Union of Nature Conservation’s World Conservation Congress, a global event that takes place every four years to set priorities and drive action for nature conservation and sustainable development. This year’s congress had its first-ever business summit, with inspiring discussions around how business is critical to stemming biodiversity loss and restoring nature. The term “Nature Positive" was also threaded throughout program sessions more than it ever has before.

There was also a palpable sense of urgency: as a global community, we need to do something differently—and quickly—to avoid irreversible ecosystem collapse, with cascading effects on supply chains, business continuity, and human wellbeing.

If you are a company working towards setting nature positive goals, how can you ensure that the targets you are setting meet this sense of urgency, that your actions will help where it’s most needed?

The Global Biodiversity Framework

Luckily, there is a guidepost for biodiversity goals: the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Adopted in 2022, this historic international agreement aims to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030, with a 2050 vision of living in harmony with nature. The Global Biodiversity Framework is often referred to as the “Paris Agreement for nature,” as both frameworks set ambitious, high-level, and long-term goals to guide global action.

Both agreements feature prominent, quantifiable targets. For the Global Biodiversity Framework, the most famous is the "30x30" pledge to conserve 30% of land and water by 2030, which has been likened to the Paris Agreement's 1.5°C global warming limit. The 30x30 goal involves improving existing protected areas, establishing new ones, and supporting existing conservation efforts, often through a focus on equitable and inclusive conservation.

Why 30%?

Under this goal, governments will set nationally appropriate targets that collectively aim to protect 30% of Earth's land and ocean area by 2030. Currently, a much smaller percentage of the Earth's land and oceans are officially protected (around 18% of land and 8% of ocean globally). Scientists agree that protecting 30% is the minimum necessary to counter climate change and biodiversity loss. The 30x30 target aims to protect diverse and ecologically representative areas to ensure the long-term health of the planet.

How does this link to business?

The Global Biodiversity Framework directly engages the private sector in Target 15 by calling on businesses to reduce their negative impacts and increase their positive contributions to nature by 2030. Target 15 requires large and transnational companies and financial institutions to regularly monitor, assess, and disclose their risks, dependencies, and impacts on biodiversity across their entire value chain.

Companies can align to the 30x30 goal in the same way they aligned to the Paris Agreement, where they translated the Paris Agreement's temperature goals into company-specific emissions reduction targets. As of October 2025, nearly 12,000 companies have set science-based targets or commitments for climate, creating competitive advantage and meeting investor expectations. Yet for nature, corporate action remains nascent.

Consider these questions:

If your operations or supply chain overlap with the 30% of earth that is or will be protected, and what does that mean for your business?
As governments race to meet 30x30 commitments, which of your assets or suppliers sit in areas likely to gain protected status?
Your investors and customers already expect Paris-aligned climate targets. When will they ask about your 30x30 strategy?
If you're already making "nature positive" claims, can you demonstrate they contribute to the 30x30 goal, or are they just isolated offsets?

Differences Between Climate and Nature Targets

There are a couple of crucial differences between climate and nature targets. Climate has the advantage of a single metric—tonnes of CO2—while biodiversity impacts vary by location, species, and ecosystem, making measurement more complex. Climate strategies also took a decade to mature, but we don't have a decade for nature. Governments are already designating new protected areas, creating immediate regulatory and reputational risks for unprepared companies.

But this complexity shouldn't deter action. With the right tools, assessing your business activities against biodiversity-sensitive areas across the globe is straightforward. The question isn't whether to align to 30x30, but whether you'll lead or lag.

Your first step to 30x30 alignment

Our platform at Dunya Analytics empowers you to assess your business activities for proximity to biodiversity-sensitive areas. Our results show you not only current legally protected areas, but additional areas that are recognized for biodiversity importance, which could come under legal protection as countries act to reach their 30x30 aligned goal. Knowing where to prioritize action- both for risks and opportunities to your business- is the first step to aligning with 30x30.

30x30: The Biodiversity Target Every Company Needs to Understand