Our successes
Living Sustainably
We’re addressing the drivers of environmental degradation and promoting a ‘one planet’ economy where people and nature thrive.
17 GOALS
Global goals
This year, in a huge success for WWF, the 193 member states of the UN agreed and adopted a new set of goals that will guide the planet towards sustainable development over the next 15 years. It could fundamentally change how we treat our planet and its people. The Sustainable Development Goals show clear signs of our three years of influence in the process: many of the goals and targets reflect our asks, and the agreement even reflects the wording of our mission (‘a world in which humans live in harmony with nature’). It sets out a truly ambitious agenda for all countries to eradicate extreme poverty, develop a fair and sustainable global economy and stop degrading the planet’s natural resources. The result will impact on every aspect of our work: from forests, oceans and fresh water to energy, food, production, consumption and climate change. There’s now much to do to ensure these transformational targets are implemented.
>3 YEARS
Wellbeing in Wales
After more than three years of lobbying by WWF Cymru and other organisations, the Welsh Assembly has passed the groundbreaking Wellbeing of Future Generations Act. The act presents an amazing opportunity to further sustainable development in Wales. It requires public bodies to ensure their decision-making meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The goals of the act include a low-carbon society that functions within nature’s limits. It also strives for a biodiverse natural environment that’s resilient and adaptable in the face of challenges such as climate change.
520,325
Keeping Europe’s nature alive
We joined more than half a million people who spoke up to preserve EU laws that protect Europe’s amazing wildlife. The European Commission and some European countries are considering weakening these vital laws, which would undo years of progress and put at least 60% of animals and plants of European importance and 77% of their homes at risk. But the biggest number of people ever to respond to an EU public consultation said these nature laws shouldn’t be changed. And the European Parliament agrees with us: it’s telling member states and the EC that revising the existing rules (known as the Birds and Habitats Directives) would be bad for nature, for people and for business. We’ve been campaigning to convince Europe’s decision-makers to retain the current directives, and for them to be better implemented. The EU is currently home to the world’s largest network of protected areas, which covers almost a fifth of its land. A final decision on the future of the laws is expected by June 2016.
31%
Rethinking risk
We’re campaigning to protect precious natural World Heritage sites from threats such as those posed by exploitation for oil, gas and minerals. A new report we released during the year showed that almost a third of all UNESCO natural World Heritage sites are under threat of oil, gas and mining exploration. They’re places that are home to some of the world’s rarest and most treasured wildlife. Exploitation can also damage the communities who depend on these amazing places for their livelihoods. We’re urging potential investors in such extractive industries to rethink their exposure to both financial and reputational risk. There are alternatives: sustainable development of natural World Heritage sites can offer a better solution to safeguard the futures of wildlife and local communities.
Find out more and read our Safeguarding Outstanding Natural Value report
$ TRILLIONS
Low-carbon opportunities
We were the only NGO invited to contribute to a major financial sector project assessing the growing opportunities there are for investors in a transition to a low-carbon economy – as well as the risks inherent in continuing to invest in fossil fuel-based sectors. The project was led by Mercer, the global consultancy. We joined leading global investors and pension funds, and were able to influence the level of ambition, and the climate ‘scenarios’ that were analysed. The result was a landmark report – Investing in a time of climate change. Among many important findings, it shows that even its most ambitious scenario (transforming to a clean energy world where global temperature rise is kept below 2°C) isn’t more costly to investors at a portfolio level. This should give investors (including Mercer’s clients, at a scale that involves trillions of dollars) confidence that they can indeed advocate for strong climate policies without sacrificing financial returns.
25-YEAR PLAN
A greener budget
The UK government has committed to developing a 25-year plan to restore biodiversity, and to extend the life of the Natural Capital Committee which advises the government on the subject of our ‘natural capital’. These are among the key things we called for in our Greener Budget report, which we launched in early 2015. The report also suggests practical measures the Treasury could introduce to ensure the UK remains globally competitive in a resource-constrained world, by developing a sustainable, low-carbon economy. Danny Alexander – then chief secretary to the Treasury – welcomed our report, saying it was a product of “careful economic thinking” and well-motivated environmental thinking, and that the government would look at the proposals carefully. This sentiment was echoed by the chancellor George Osborne.