This report series is delivered in five parts:
  • Part one is a recorded presentation, supported by a brief written summary outlining the call to action for business and the profession.
  • Parts two to five are composed of written summaries providing high-level practical principles-based guidance for professional accountants in business leadership, performance management and control, corporate reporting and assurance roles. Many of the principles can and have been adapted to cater for organisations with fewer resources or at early stages in their integrated capitals thinking and acting journey for the planet.

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With over half of global GDP generated by business that is moderately or highly dependent on nature, business transformation is central to achieving the required care for nature and society’s prosperity. Businesses and professional accountants are being called to action by investors and policy makers, who are impelling them to focus on natural capital strategies. 

Professional accountants have always been essential to helping business achieve their strategies, and now they must employ integrated thinking that recognises and fairly manages the interrelationships between the material resources (capitals) underpinning organisation and societal value.  

Natural capital strategies are based on one or a combination of the 4Rs (see infographic above). These relate to removing and reducing impact, restoring what has been damaged and reimagining success. The role of the professional accountant is to bring to life the 4Rs required for business, nature and society’s sustainable prosperity.

With their combination of specialist business and finance skills, professional accountants hold a multitude of roles in business and on behalf of society. They perform the interwoven functions of evaluating data to create strategy that realises opportunities, formulate and execute systems and processes to monitor progress and manage risk.

Accountants gain and service investment that finance delivering strategic initiatives, further relevantly and reliably communicating strategy and its and its performance in assured reports suitable for a broad range of stakeholders.

Watch the introductory video and read this series of guides to learn more about how you can adopt the mindset of a sustainability trailblazer to enable you and your business to connect with natural capital groups and appreciate the guidance from green finance initiatives and government schemes.

Each guide within this series contains examples and links to further sources of detail. There is also a condensed version of each guide, providing professional accountants with a checklist of the key techniques to better manage natural capital.

Further reading