12 Feb 2026
“Nature positive is not a slogan. It is a measurable goal”
Introducing Marco Lambertini, the Convener of the Nature Positive Initiative, a diverse alliance of 27 global organisations aiming to drive nature positive action by providing tools, guidance and alignment. Not only that, Marco is also the lead author of the recently published book and film ‘Becoming Nature Positive’ and our International Speaker at TRANSFORM 2026.
We decided to sit down with Marco ahead of his live virtual address presentation to find out a little more about him and his work.
What does “nature positive” really mean?
The Nature Positive goal is defined as to ‘Halt and reverse nature loss by 2030 on a 2020 baseline and achieve full recovery by 2050’.
Put simply, it means a future where we stop developing at the expense of nature, undermining the foundation of present and future human development. A future with more nature, not less.
Can you speak a little bit about what the Nature Positive Initiative (NPI) is and what you do?
We are a coalition of 27 diverse organizations, representing everything from business networks and standards-setters to academia and large global nature conservation groups. Our main purpose is to drive nature positive action by providing tools, guidance, alignment. The first objective was to define the Nature Positive goal and advocate for its global adoption. This language was embraced in 2022 by almost 200 countries under the UN Global Biodiversity Framework. In this current phase, besides preserving the integrity of the use of the term ‘nature positive’, we are providing aligned guidance for businesses, governments and organisations to measure and deliver genuine nature positive outcomes in an effective and cost-effective way.
In parallel, we mobilise a growing global movement of 400 individual organisations from the private sector, civil society, UN agencies and more, coming together under the Nature Positive Forum to support the Nature Positive goal.
Let’s get into the nitty-gritty. What are the metrics to measure nature, and how is this applied in your work?
Biodiversity is often perceived as a complex subject, particularly for companies with no history of engagement in the area. The fragmented approaches to measuring nature’s many dimensions only add to this perception of complexity, creating uncertainty, inertia, and in the worst cases, an excuse for inaction. To address this, in July 2024, the Nature Positive Initiative launched a process to build consensus on a minimum set of science-based, yet practical, accessible and affordable state of nature metrics. These will be used to drive action, measure outcomes, and support accountability and recognition.
We began by mapping the existing ecosystem of nature metrics and identified more than 600 metrics currently available. We realised we needed to create something simpler. This does not mean discarding or dismissing the many excellent metrics already out there — they are indeed valuable — but rather focusing on a minimum viable set that can help companies begin their nature-positive journey.
After an intense eight months of discussions and inputs from a large and diverse group of users and stakeholders, followed by another eight months of piloting by companies across several sectors and geographies, we are currently running a last public consultation for final feedback, and we will be soon releasing the State of Nature Metrics framework.
Hopefully in time for the Transform conference!
The global ambition is to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030 – what can we realistically expect to see by then?
Importantly, Nature Positive is not an abstract ideal or a distant aspiration. It is an urgent necessity. The truly unrealistic notion is to think that we can continue over-exploiting and degrading nature without consequences.
Nature Positive, like carbon neutrality, is an existential goal that society and the economy must embrace, which is precisely why both have been formally agreed upon by international conventions. Now we need to deliver.
Will we be nature positive globally by 2030? It’s going to be challenging. But irrespective of whether we make sufficient progress (and reap the associated benefits) or not (and suffer the consequences), the nature positive imperative will become increasingly evident and even more compellingly, continue to persuade the world of its necessity.
You recently co-authored the book ‘Becoming Nature Positive: Transitioning to a Safe and Just Future’ – who is this book for and what do you hope people will take away from it?
‘Becoming Nature Positive’ is a book about the vision, ambition and goal of building a future with more nature, not less. The book, like the film it inspired, discusses what Nature Positive means, why it is crucial and what it takes to move away from today’s nature-negative society and economy, and embrace a new nature-positive development, economic and perhaps most critical, cultural model. The e-book is free to download, and we want as many people as possible to read it around the world.
The overall message is one of action, change and extraordinary opportunity. Our ‘Great Chance’ to write the next page of humanity’s history. The future can be bright. We hold the pen. The choice is ours. The choice is clear.
Marco Lambertini will be speaking at TRANSFORM 2026 with the International address on the 19th March via a live virtual address. We will also be releasing our Nature Positive Roadmap at TRANSFORM.