State of Finance for Forests 2025

United Nations 10 months ago

The first State of Finance for Forests (SFF) report: Unlock. Unleash. Realizing forest potential requires tripling investments in forests by 2030 provides a global overview of public and private forest finance in 2023, comparing current flows with the investments needed to realize forests’ potential to address climate change, biodiversity loss, and land degradation.  It integrates key private finance channels and nature-related asset classes such as certified commodity supply chains, impact investing, carbon and biodiversity markets, philanthropic funding, and private capital mobilized through public finance. The report finds that forests remain significantly underfunded: annual investment must increase from US$84 billion in 2023 to US$300 billion by 2030 and US$498 billion by 2050, leaving an annual gap of about US$216 billion.  Private forest finance remains modest at US$7.5 billion in 2023, with most flows directed to lower-risk markets rather than tropical commodities that drive the bulk of deforestation. At the same time, potentially environmentally damaging subsidies reached around US$406 billion in 2023, and private financial institutions provided an estimated US$8.9 trillion in active financing to companies with high deforestation risk as of November 2024.
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layersDaily Sustainability Digest

Published about 14 days ago



Financial institutions are accelerating sustainable construction by aligning lending with measurable environmental performance. Santander UK’s decision to adapt mortgage models for Octopus Energy’s Zero Bills homes integrates credit policy with energy-efficient buildings, translating net zero carbon ambitions into mainstream financial metrics. This shift signals the emergence of whole life carbon assessment as a determinant in property valuation and positions embodied carbon and life cycle cost analysis as standard tools of risk management across the sector.

Digital transformation is amplifying the movement. The Monklands digital hospital project in Scotland demonstrates how offsite manufacturing, lifecycle assessment and connected data platforms enhance building lifecycle performance, minimise waste, and verify embodied carbon in materials. Durham’s adoption of digital planning and assessment tools reflects a broader drive toward resource efficiency in construction and environmental sustainability in construction. Together these initiatives redefine sustainable building design by embedding whole life carbon accountability into design and delivery workflows.

Policy remains an enabling force but the centre of momentum is shifting from government mandates to operational proof. A renewed national emphasis on green affordability and the integration of social equity with decarbonising the built environment are reinforcing the transition toward net zero whole life carbon outcomes. These developments illustrate a maturing circular economy in construction where sustainable building practices, low carbon design and eco-design for buildings converge to deliver verifiable carbon footprint reduction. The industry’s direction is now measurable—kilograms of CO₂, minutes saved, resources reused—evidence that green construction is evolving from aspiration to tangible low carbon building performance.

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