The Revenues for Nature (R4N) project has announced support for an initial seven investment models designed to unlock up to $200m for nature restoration and conservation.
Achieving global nature goals requires an additional $200bn to be mobilised annually, with the private sector expected to play a crucial role in closing this gap. Yet its contribution remains limited – most nature-related funding currently comes from public sources or philanthropy, while private sector finance is often constrained by a lack of clear revenue models.
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R4N was launched in March 2024 by the Green Finance Institute with United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) and United Nations Development Programme Biodiversity Finance Initiative (UNDP BIOFIN). Working with partners and governments, it aims to demonstrate the replicability and scaling of models and mechanisms that unlock private sector investment, such as mitigation banking, payments for ecosystem services, commodity supply chain financing and more.
The inaugural cohort of partners and initiatives that R4N will support includes:
- Replicating and scaling Landscape Enterprise Networks (LENs) across Europe with 3Keel
- Understanding the replicability of Habitat and Mitigation Banking in Central America with Environmental Policy Innovation Center (EPIC)
- Scaling the Living Amazon Mechanism across Brazil with UNEP FI and Natura
- Adapting the Rimba Collective model for the fashion and textile industry with Lestari Capital
- Developing a Payments for Ecosystem Services programme in Sri Lanka and Colombia with UNDP BIOFIN
- Replicating a Fisheries Improvement fund for small-scale fisheries in the Maldives with Finance Earth
R4N said it will support these partners to develop delivery plans for their expansion, which include landscape and policy analysis, demand and supply preparation, pilot development, capacity funding needs and financial structuring.
“Across the globe, successful models are already unlocking investment from multinational and regional businesses into nature restoration and nature-based solutions. By championing these pioneering models and approaches – scaling their impact, replicating their success, and sharing lessons learned where relevant – we will be able to accelerate progress towards closing the nature finance gap,” said Helen Avery, nature director at the Green Finance Institute.
Project – The Rimba Collective model
The Rimba Collective is a collaboration of consumer goods manufacturers connected to the agricultural commodities industry, particularly the palm oil sector. It aims to transform this sector to sustainable economies through programmes that protect and restore natural landscapes and support local communities.
During its first year of full operations, the organisation brought 73,000 hectares of forest conservation projects into the Collective, with the long-term goal to protect and restore 550,000 hectares of forest, supporting 32,000 people in forest communities in Southeast Asia over 30 years.
“Nature markets are still nascent, yet they are essential for unlocking scalable finance for conservation and restoration. Innovative models like the Rimba Collective show that it is possible to couple natural capital protection with business imperatives. They also highlight the crucial role of blended finance in developing these markets,” commented Michal Zrust, founder and CEO of Lestari Capital.
“We are grateful to R4N for their support in scaling our approach across industries, ensuring greater value flows towards protecting vital ecosystems, safeguarding communities’ livelihoods and enhancing supply chain resilience.”
