the fragility of nature, and which are the likely targets of policies aimed at restoring it. investments in such companies create transition risks, and make the financial sector part of the problem. but it is does not have to be this way. financial institutions are the enablers of economy activity. they have the power, through capital allocation, to guide financial flows away from activities that hurt nature. the question is : how can and will we make sure that we – the broad financial system, from public to private actors – become part of the solution? studies by the world bank, the central banks of the netherlands, france, malaysia and mexico and others, and the study by the network for greening the financial system – that is our partnership of 116 central banks and international organisations – recently concluded that biodiversity loss is a source of financial risks and could affect financial stability. creating awareness, that is step one. g p the second step is the need to understand the problem. several central banks and supervisors are working on quantifying the problem : measuring the value of natural capital, understanding its relation to economic growth, providing assessments of financial vulnerabilities and building scenarios to create a much needed perspective.. better disclosures are at the heart of those efforts. after all, information provided by corporate and financial institutions is a key ingredient for better analyses and decision - making. governments and standard setters have to take a leading role by implementing, improving and harmonising disclosure requirements. of equal importance are market - led initiatives like the work that is currently being done by the taskforce on nature - related disclosures ( tnfd ) these two steps represent what we excel at : collecting and interpreting data. but we have to make sure that our quest for better data does not result in delays. because it is time – high time – for the third step : to actually take action and use the data at our disposal, to change the way we do things, to restore the balance between nature and economy. as the nitrogen crisis and last year ’ s floods in the netherlands show, the loss of biodiversity is not merely a challenge for future generations. timely action is needed to ensure that we bend the curve in time. actions to stop the degradation of nature in the short term actions to move swiftly to an economy that helps to restore nature. this is why i am thrilled that the ngfs does not only acknowledge the relevance of naturerelated risks, but also established a taskforce to make sure these risks are

seriously taken into account. as a banker – and to be honest : as a person – i am risk - averse. but uncertainties must not hold us back. nature – life! – is an uncertainty by definition. we have to live with that … i know, this is not the first time high - level policy makers have come together to discuss biodiversity loss. in fact, international biodiversity targets have been set before. unfortunately, all signs show that these ambitions and goals have not been met. so let ’ s talk about our ambitions and goals and targets. let ’ s step over our urge to avoid risks to avert the risk of further biodiversity loss, of further irreparable damage to our planet. let ’ s put our heads, our minds, our ideas together today to help each other take that very important third step. let ’ s talk about sustainable finance and how we can make a change. a real change. because all beings – animal, mineral and vegetal – have a role, a place, an impact on our planet and our lives. or, in ‘ our ’ language : diversification is critical. for asset managers, but also for nature. and let ’ s be honest, we all know that the extinction of one species would not really disturb our planet ’ s ecosystem ; one species would not really be missed. and that is homo sapiens. i seriously doubt that other species would take the trouble to stuff the last human being and put it in a museum … so instead of being a net negative for this planet, let ’ s earn our keep! i know we can do it! just look at the programme. look at the participants. a rare and impressive collection of esteemed colleagues and brilliant minds, like ecb board member frank elderson, the executive secretary of the un for the convention of biological diversity elizabeth maruma mrema, banque de france governor francois villeroy and many other knowledgeable representatives of important organisations like the european commission, ngo ’ s, standard - setters, universities, the ngfs, banks and asset managers. together we can take the next step!