Federated Hermes engagement and stewardship manager Sonya Likhtman talks us through the challenges of biodiversity loss and how they are intertwined with climate change. She also highlights how changing our diets and the rise of technology can help turn the tide against the pending biodiversity threat. Sonya also explains the importance of the COP 15 conference, which could hopefully pave the way for a global framework to tackle biodiversity loss, as well as explaining how financial firms and investors can raise awareness in this space.

What is biodiversity?
Whether it is the air you breathe, the water you drink or the food you eat – all of them rely on biodiversity. Simply put, biodiversity means the variety of life on Earth. It includes variation at three levels: genetic, species and ecosystem.  It captures the diversity of plants, animals, insects and other organisms in land, ocean and freshwater ecosystems.

Unfortunately, it is under major threat. In a 2019 UN report, scientists warned one million species - out of an estimated total of eight million - are threatened with extinction, many within decades - with changes in land use, climate change, pollution and hunting all playing a major role. At present, we would require 1.6 Earth’s to maintain the world’s current living standard – so something has to give.

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