Case studies from leading companies demonstrate that investment in nature-related opportunities can deliver significant commercial benefits, yet these opportunities remain under-recognised and under-valued in mainstream business practice. 

This paper focuses on the opportunities for companies to protect and create value through nature-related investments and actions. It presents case studies co-developed with companies through practitioner interviews, spanning a wide range of sectors – utilities, food and beverage, and consumer goods and consumer discretionary. The goal was to explore if and how companies, both privately held and publicly listed, have captured commercial opportunities from investments or shifts in business practices and, importantly, how they built the business case for action. Our aim is to provide initial transferable lessons for other businesses, as well as to inform future methodological developments towards business case formation.

This paper is intended for sustainability leaders seeking to build the internal business case for action to mobilise investment and capture nature-related opportunities. It intends to provide new evidence on the commercial case and how companies made decisions, by synthesising the current market understanding of nature-related business opportunities and presenting concrete investment examples. Finally, it aims to support those working across sustainability, finance, procurement, and risk functions to help build capability and buy-in across the business.