Exploring Natural Capital Opportunities, Risks and Exposure (ENCORE)

Source: ENCORE

ENCORE has a business/industry focus: “Ecosystem services are the links between nature and business. Each of these services represent a benefit that nature provides to enable or facilitate business production processes.”

ENCORE is a free online tool aimed at helping organizations, especially financial institutions, understand their risks and dependencies related to natural capital. The tool breaks down how different economic sectors and processes affect nature. It is particularly useful for identifying nature-related risks in lending, underwriting, and investments in high-risk industries. A specialized biodiversity module focuses on the agriculture and mining sectors, helping align activities with global nature goals. The tool serves as an introductory guide to frameworks like the one by the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD). The ENCORE Partnership, consisting of Global Canopy, UNEP FI, and UNEP-WCMC, maintains and updates the tool. This partnership was formerly known as The Natural Capital Finance Alliance (NCFA).

Ecosystem Services Categories

Ecosystem services were classified according to the Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services (CICES) which comprises a five-level hierarchical structure, for example: Section (e.g. Provisioning), Division (e.g. Nutrition), Group (e.g. Terrestrial plants and animals for food), Class (e.g. crops), and Class type (e.g. wheat). Cultural ecosystem services were not considered in this project as they are not considered to be direct inputs or to enable production processes.

Ecosystem Services Classified

Filtration

Fibers & Other Materials

Disease Control

Climate Regulation

Ventilation

Water Flow Maintenance

Ground Water

Buffering & Attenuation of Mass Flows

Water Quality

Mediation of Sensory Impacts

Bioremediation

Soil Quality

Pollination

Dilution By Atmosphere & Ecosystems

Surface Water

Animal-Based Energy

Mass Stabilisation & Erosion Control

Maintain Nursery Habitats

Genetic Materials

Pest Control

Flood & Storm Protection