Biodiversity decline poses a major threat to ecosystems and human wellbeing, with large parts of the global economy depending on healthy natural systems. Because businesses rely heavily on nature, environmental degradation and nature loss put trillions of dollars of economic value at risk worldwide. Despite international commitments to halt and reverse biodiversity loss, progress is limited by a substantial lack of funding. New financial approaches aimed at supporting nature protection and restoration are emerging, but their success depends on robust and scalable systems for monitoring environmental outcomes. Earth Observation data are increasingly important in this context, providing reliable evidence to support conservation policies and nature-related investments. The European Space Agency plays a key role by supplying high-quality satellite data and representing the Earth Observation science community in policy discussions.
© European Space Agency
The LEON project aims to strengthen the use of Earth Observation in nature finance. The project centers on the use of EO data to support financial decision-making, fostering collaboration among stakeholders working on biodiversity conservation, nature loss, ecosystem services, and sustainable finance. LEON is running six pilots that explore how EO can inform nature finance. These pilots aim to demonstrate practical ways in which Earth Observation data can enhance environmental monitoring, strengthen connections between ecological outcomes and financial decisions using scalable approaches.
IIASA contributes to two pilot studies:
- Mining value chains: This pilot aims to use EO to monitor water pollution from mineral extraction, helping financial institutions understand the environmental impacts of their investments. IIASA supports this pilot by investigating mining impacts on biodiversity.
- Agrifood supply chains: This pilot aims at tracking land conversion, deforestation, and other environmental changes related to agriculture. IIASA supports this pilot by assessing the Biodiversity Intacness Index in an agricultural landscape.
Funded by ESA, leading partners Oxford and Assimila.