As an adopter of the Equator Principles (actually, the only African bank to have done so) and a member of the UNEP Finance Initiative Biodiversity & Ecosystem Services Workstream, I think it is clear that biodiversity is an important consideration for us. As a bank located in South Africa — the third most biodiverse country in the world — we understand the need for our business to be aligned with South Africa’s national policies, as reflected in the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act of 2004, as well as a National Biodiversity Strategy and Action plan.

Commitments to biodiversity
Nedbank is, in fact, committed to understanding and integrating sustainability considerations into its business strategy and processes, and has a particular dedication to environmental responsibility as South Africa’s ‘green’ bank, as seen by our corporate colours. A number of activities demonstrate Nedbank’s commitment to biodiversity, including:

• Nedbank’s environmental management programme includes reducing consumption of natural resources, recycling programmes and staff awareness campaigns.

• Nedbank’s Climate change programme which recognises that climate change and biodiversity are closely interlinked: natural ecosystems play a key role in locking up GHG emissions; the impacts of natural disasters are compounded by loss of biodiversity; water supply and sanitation services are underpinned by healthy ecosystems and; the role of BES in providing food and water, building materials, medicines and other goods and services to many rural communities is extremely significant. Nedbank’s resource consumption and lending activities underpin the climate change programme for the Group.

• In 2005 Nedbank launched the Nedbank Capital Green Mining awards as an opportunity to engage with clients in the sector regarding sustainability issues, and recognise clients who have developed innovative solutions to integrating social and environmental considerations into their operations.

• Nedbank undertook a biodiversity assessment at Olwazini, its learning centre, which is situated in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage site, in line with the provincial government biodiversity strategy for the area. This includes clearing alien vegetation, upgrading water treatment facilities and aligning the future development plan for the facility with provincial government plans. Trusting partners We have been working on improving our environmental policies and performance through a conservation partnership with WWF signed in 2005. In actual fact, our relationship with WWF goes back some 17 years. Through the Green Trust, funds are raised for conservation by client support of green affinity banking products. The Trust has so far supported more than 140 projects, which reach across a broad spectrum of environmental conservation concerns within South Africa. Specific focus has also been placed on ecosystem protection through projects such as the Biodiversity and wine initiative and Ekangala Grasslands programme. These programmes attempt to bolster government efforts in protecting the threatened cape Fynbos and grasslands ecosystems by engaging with landowners in the management of their resources.

A significant focus has always been the interaction between people and the environment, with a concern that it is the poorest of the poor that most suffer when environmental degradation occurs. The link between poverty and the natural environment has often been recognized as a vicious self-reinforcing circle between poverty and a degraded environment. I think we all agree that people must be empowered to manage their own environment and that a healthy natural environment is a first step to ensuring that marginal and vulnerable communities are buffered from the worst effects of poverty.

Under the partnership, Nedbank works with WWF South Africa to improve its own environmental performance and environmental policies, provide opportunities for staff awareness and engagement on Green Trust projects and set joint environmental targets over a 5-year period. The Green Trust exemplifies successful partnerships, from the partnership between WWF-SA and Nedbank, to the myriad of partner NGOs and conservation agencies that implement our projects. The Trust’s success is testimony to its ability to engage with a wide variety of stakeholders and partners from grassroots communities through to government and corporates in a constructive and innovative way.

Justin Smith is Head: Governance and Sustainability, Nedbank.