Visualized: The $942 Billion Nature Investment Gap
Nature is one of the world’s most valuable assets, providing clean air, freshwater, and biodiversity that support economies and livelihoods.
But are the current financial flows into nature conservation and restoration enough to meet the needs?
This graphic, sponsored by Zero Carbon Analytics, shows the total annual nature investment needed by 2030 for each nature category compared with the current finance flows using data from BloombergNEF.
Billions More Needed to Protect Nature
The total required investment in nature spans multiple categories, from protected areas to productive landscapes like croplands and rangelands.
| Category | Type | Annual Investment Needed by 2030 |
|---|---|---|
| Protected Areas | N/A | $229 billion |
| Productive Areas | Croplands | $500 billion |
| Invasive Species | $100 billion | |
| Rangelands | $97 billion | |
| Fisheries | $56 billion | |
| Coastal | $44 billion | |
| Forests | $37 billion | |
| Urban Areas | N/A | $87 billion |
Figures in real 2023 U.S. dollars and may not add up due to rounding.
Protected Areas, which are regions of land or water legally designated for conservation and biodiversity protection, require an estimated $229 billion annually to ensure conservation efforts can be sustained.
Productive Areas, including croplands, fisheries, and rangelands, need $753 billion annually to transition to more sustainable practices.
Additional investments are required to combat invasive species and support ecosystem restoration, totaling nearly $100 billion per year. Urban areas also require additional investments, with the category needing an extra $87 billion annually.
While the total nature investment gap amounts to $942 billion, the total annual expenditure harming nature is a much higher $7,000 billion according to the United Nations.
Scaling Up Finance for Nature
Despite these significant funding needs, global investments in biodiversity remain well below the levels necessary to close the gap.
The shortfall is particularly evident in areas like sustainable agriculture and marine conservation, where funding is a fraction of what is required. Encouragingly, recent global agreements have taken steps toward closing the gap.
At COP16 in February 2025, governments adopted the first global biodiversity finance strategy under the Convention on Biological Diversity. They aimed to close the $700 billion annual funding gap through investment, subsidy reform, and stronger financial mechanisms.
Nonetheless, more funding is needed to prevent the planet’s natural ecosystems from declining further.
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