Innovative Financial Solutions for Nature
Unlocking the Potential of Private Capital
By Arnaud Goessens | October 24, 2025
[NOTE: Original article published in Forbes Belgium (in French). To read that version, follow this link.]
This summer provided yet another stark reminder that climate change is no longer a distant threat, but a devastating reality. Wildfires have swept through Spain, France, Portugal, Greece, and many other regions across Europe, destroying hundreds of thousands of hectares of forest, damaging homes, displacing families, and leaving billions in damages. And Europe is not alone: from North America to Asia, unprecedented heatwaves, devastating floods, and storms of unparalleled intensity are battering communities.
As we battle the flames, a deeper crisis unfolds: the collapse of biodiversity. Forests that once absorbed carbon are turning to ash, oceans are acidifying, and species are vanishing at unprecedented rates — all further worsening the climate crisis and disturbing the natural systems that sustain our health, food, and economies.
Ecological Emergency, Shrinking Financing
At this pivotal moment, as geopolitical tensions rise and official development assistance (ODA) declines, the international community faces a paradox: never has the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems been more urgent, yet public funding remains stagnant — or even decreases. With the 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Brazil on the horizon, the financing question looms large: how can we mobilize private capital flows to protect the climate and biodiversity, beyond government commitments, to meet the scale of the challenge?
Belgium, a Key Player in Green Finance
Belgium sits at the crossroads of international finance and sustainability. Its financial sector — already a leader in responsible investing and green bonds — has the expertise to scale the next wave of solutions. Beyond today’s crises lies a powerful opportunity: innovative financial models that can redefine how we value and protect nature. To rise to the challenge, we must unlock private capital — and Belgium is well placed to help turn promising mechanisms into real impact.
High Potential Financial Tools
Among promising tools are nature credits, still in pilot phase but with potential to direct large-scale capital into conservation and restoration — provided they are designed with credibility and transparency, and supported by the development of a robust market. Blended finance mechanisms go a step further, strategically combining public or philanthropic funds with private investments to de-risk projects and make conservation genuinely bankable. Meanwhile, debt-for-nature swaps are proving their value as well, offering countries a chance to restructure sovereign debt while unlocking significant durable finance for biodiversity and climate.
Nature As an Asset, Not As a Cost
In the face of shrinking ODA and growing ecological threats, the key lies in reimagining nature not as a cost center but as an asset — one that generates returns, mitigates risks, and underpins long-term security and prosperity. The Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF), proposed by Brazil for launch at COP30, offers a blueprint for how public and private capital can keep forests standing — and could deliver up to $4 billion annually to tropical forest countries that make real progress in conservation and restoration.
We have an opportunity to show leadership at COP30 by further advancing innovative financing models that can make private capital a true partner for the planet and its people. The capital is there; the question is whether we have the imagination and resolve to deploy it for nature, before it’s too late.
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Arnaud Goessens is Associate Director of EU Policy at the Wildlife Conservation Society European Union Office | Member of the Advisory Board of the European Business and Biodiversity Platform | Bioengineer, ULB | MPA in Environmental Policy, Columbia University.
