Green Investment Is The Right Way To Go In The Post-Pandemic World
by Irena Mensikova
How can green coronavirus recovery boost the economy?
What if we told you ‘going green’ could not only help our planet but it could also create more jobs? It’s not utopia, in fact, this is what the World Economic Forum’s latest report revealed. According to the WEF, investing in a green recovery after the coronavirus pandemic could create 395 million jobs and $10 trillion in new business opportunities by 2030.
More nature could bring more jobs
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented change in the world. Now is the time governments and businesses are trying to find the way to a ‘new normal’. While boosting the economy is a crucial step, it’s also important to do it the ‘green way’.
The truth is we cannot just simply go back to being the same planet we were in the pre-pandemic era. The WEF’s report warns that the destruction of the natural world today is threatening over half of global GDP. The green investment could be a proper way out. What’s needed is a $2.7 trillion annual investment through 2030 to scale the transitions, and of course the will of the world leaders to pursue the green way.
The World Economic Forum urges governments and businesses to focus on a nature-first approach that could be a jobs-first solution. Nature-led recovery could rebuild economies and provide blueprint towards future prosperity.
“Nature can provide the jobs our economies need. There is nothing stopping businesses and governments from implementing these plans today, at scale, to re-employ millions,” said Akanksha Khatri, head of WEF’s Nature Action Agenda.
The report warns that many workers in unsustainable industries will lose their jobs. That’s why it’s more than important to make sure people were retrained and ready for the transition to a green economy. Nature-positive changes are needed in everything from how land and oceans are used to how energy is produced, resources extracted and infrastructures created, according to Khatri.
In some places around the world, the shifts are already starting. From tree-planting campaigns in Kenya or Pakistan to South Korea’s $95 billion economic recovery plan focused on green investment in electric vehicles and hydrogen cars.
The WEF report is based on previous examples where nature-positive ways lead to better business outcomes. Such as in Vietnam, where people living in coastal communities saw their incomes more than doubled following the restoration of mangroves.
Restoring nature will lead to long-term protection against the effects of extreme weather such as flooding, storms, and drought. Protecting land can also benefit the surrounding areas such as river systems providing clean water or liveable habitats for numerous wild species.
Our mission to restore nature
Nature conservation is our number one focus in the Blue Streams Program. Through the process of restoration, we are providing environmental education, connecting people in the community to their natural environment, and improving biodiversity.
We focus on the restoration of rivers by planting trees and green spaces in urban areas which not only comes with the aesthetic benefits, it also increases the value of nearby houses, increases tax revenues, supports local businesses, decreases government spending through the natural provision of ecosystem services and also — creates jobs.
We work with nature and enhance synergistic relationships to further address the need to reduce pollutants that enter the rivers. All the while, we prevent erosion and provide wildlife habitat.
Restoration projects like this are crucial in enhancing the economic value of a city, its communities, and more. We believe it is essential to protect and conserve nature to contribute to the global economy. Hand-sanitizer do it yourself and plastic free.
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