Earthmind

Earthmind
Small Business
Industry Biodiversity, Business & Sustainable Development
Founded 2010
Founder Francis Vorhies
Headquarters Divonne-les-Bains, France
Website http://earthmind.net/


Earthmind is a small business based in Divonne-les-Bains. Its sister organization is a Swiss not-for-profit association which maintains an office at the IUCN Conservation Centre. The French company was founded in 2010 and the Swiss NGO in 2006.[1]

Today, Earthmind is brings together independent professional associates and consultants who operate in the field of sustainable development and biodiversity conservation. Earthmind works with clients and partners in the private, public and NGO sectors on various projects promoting sustainability solutions, primarily with respect to biodiversity.

Mission

Earthmind’s stated mission is "caring for our planet".[2] Its efforts seek to achieve a sustainable balance between the natural environment and human activity. By working with and assisting private companies, public organisations and non-profit groups, Earthmind seeks to evolve economic and social practices by promoting the concept of a “synergistic balance” between people and nature.

Structure

Associates

A group of Associates undertake Earthmind work on a contractual or voluntary basis. They help to organise and contribute to Earthmind’s projects and also advise on new directions for Earthmind's areas of work.

Junior Associates

Junior Associates join Earthmind on a volunteer internship basis to gain workplace experience in international sustainability work. They are usually university students studying for undergraduate or graduate degrees in subjects such as business, environmental management and international policy. In addition to supporting Earthmind’s projects, Junior Associates also participate in events at the many international organisations based in Geneva covering such topics as environment, health, human rights, labour, relief, and trade.

Themes

Earthmind’s programme of work is organised under four broad themes.

Business and biodiversity

In partnering with various private companies, NGO’s and governmental organisations, Earthmind seeks to find the common ground between business and biodiversity. Initiatives have included co-authoring a joint IUCN/Shell Oil Company study on building biodiversity business,[3] supporting the UNCTAD BioTrade Initiative,[4] and the EU Business and Biodiversity Platform.[5]

Sustainable finance

Earthmind has a particular focus on securing financing for economic, social and environmental sustainable development. For the International Labour Organisation (ILO), research was undertaken on whether Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) helps to increase the demand for labour. Regarding biodiversity finance, Earthmind serves as the Secretariat for the Green Development Initiative (GDI) and helped to develop the Danone/IUCN/Ramsar Wetland Carbon Partnership.[6]

Monitoring and evaluation

Monitoring and evaluation is a key process in creating the framework and foundations for every work programme involved in environmental and social sustainable development. Earthmind’s work in this field includes an assessment of HQ/Field cooperation and capacities for the ILOs Employment Sector, and a number of biodiversity due diligence reviews of potential corporate partners of IUCN. Earthmind also coordinates IUCN’s Independent Review Panel of the Yemen LNG Biodiversity Action Plan and previously coordinated the Independent Review Panel of the post-conflict Kuwait Environmental Remediation Programme.

Capacity building

Capacity building activities occupy an important role in the Earthmind mission. Earth Associates focus on raising awareness, research and training. Examples of capacity building projects include support to GEF IW: LEARN,[7] the IUCN Global Marine and Polar Programme,[8] and PERSGA (the Regional Organization for the Conservation of the Environment of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden)[9] on the economics of marine resources; guidance to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) on biodiversity policies; and to the ILO on strategic approaches to labour and the environmental affairs.

Key activities

Green Development Initiative

The Green Development Initiative (GDI) aims to establish a biodiversity standard and certification scheme for land management. The standard is based on the objectives and approaches of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). A key outcome of the GDI is the Verified Conservation Areas (VCA) Platform.

TEEB for Business[10]

The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) is a “major international initiative to draw attention to the global economic benefits of biodiversity, to highlight the growing costs of biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation, and to draw together expertise from the fields of science, economics and policy to enable practical actions moving forward.“[11] Earthmind has contributed to the TEEB studies and hosts a library of case studies relevant for business.

Yemen LNG Biodiversity Independent Review Panel[12]

Earthmind coordinates the IUCN Independent Review Panel of the Yemen LNG’s Biodiversity Action Plan. This plan focused on protection of the marine environment including coral reefs adjacent to the company’s operations on the Gulf of Aden and on sustainable coastal zone management including fisheries in the nearby coastal areas.

Danone Wetland Carbon Partnership[13]

The Wetland Carbon Initiative is a carbon offset scheme which aims to empower local communities and be biodiversity positive. Earthmind has been working with IUCN and the standing committee of the Ramsar Convention in order to provide a work programme enables Danone to invest in wetland carbon projects to offset emissions from its Evian brand. Work has included identifying and investing in pilot projects and developing a new methodology for mangrove carbon.[6]

Blog

Earthmind has a blog for Forbes at blog.forbes.com. Short blogs focus on the sustainability issues for business, primarily linked to biodiversity.[14]

References

  1. ↑ activeCMS by DEVinitiv GbR, 2011 - www.devinitiv.de. "Dr Francis Vorhies". Business-biodiversity.eu. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  2. ↑ "Tierramérica". Tierramerica.info. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  3. ↑ "Working with biodiversity experts | Environment & Society". Shell.com. 2009-05-05. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  4. ↑ "BioTrade Initiative, UNCTAD". Biotrade.org. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  5. ↑ "The EU Business @ Biodiversity Platform | Home". Ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  6. 1 2 "The Wetland Carbon Partnership continues for a 3rd Year". IUCN. 2011-04-15. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  7. ↑ "International Waters Learning Exchange and Resource Network — IW:LEARN". Iwlearn.net. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  8. ↑ "Marine and Polar Programme". IUCN. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  9. ↑ "PERSGA". PERSGA. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  10. ↑ "For Business". Teebweb.org. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  11. ↑ "Home of TEEB". Teebweb.org. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  12. ↑ "Environment". Yemenlng.com. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  13. ↑ "Press Release - Danone - Finance". Finance.danone.com. 2008-10-29. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  14. ↑ Vorhies, Francis. "Francis Vorhies - Earthmind - Forbes". Blogs.forbes.com. Retrieved 2012-01-28.

External links

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