IUCN RHINO is a practical, science-based approach that guides companies and other actors on what to do, where to act, and how to measure progress towards Nature Positive outcomes.

As uptake expands beyond the initial companies that helped pioneer this framework, IUCN RHINO is translating Nature Positive commitments into action that is science-based, transparent and impactful, - said IUCN’s Director of Business and Nature, Martin Sneary.

Built on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and the Species Threat Abatement and Restoration (STAR) metric, IUCN RHINO translates the world’s most authoritative biodiversity data into clear, actionable pathways. Leveraging tools and reports available in the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT), companies can see precisely where and how to reduce extinction risk and restore ecosystems as well as how to quantify the impact of those actions over time.

By linking site-level interventions to global conservation priorities, IUCN RHINO provides business with a consistent method to measure contributions to species recovery and ecosystem restoration, ensuring actions are credible and aligned with global targets under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and support efforts to “bend the curve” of biodiversity loss.

Growing uptake from business leaders

Following early application by Anglo American and Suzano, which helped pioneer the IUCN approach, several more companies are now piloting IUCN RHINO. These include APRIL, Fortescue, Newmont and Solvay, which are all applying the methodology to better understand their interface with nature and identify priority actions.

IUCN RHINO helps companies to not only report on where their operations intersect with threatened species and critical ecosystems, but it can also guide them on designing targeted interventions that will deliver measurable conservation outcomes.

Supporting TNFD implementation

The IUCN RHINO approach is aligned with the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) LEAP approach, providing a framework for companies to assess and disclose nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities. The IUCN RHINO approach goes further than LEAP, providing companies with subsequent guidance to plan, implement and report on actions to reduce impacts on biodiversity and support delivery of rapid, verifiable contributions to reducing biodiversity loss.

Companies adopting TNFD can use IUCN RHINO to demonstrate how they are mitigating operational, physical, transitional and systemic risks associated with biodiversity loss, while contributing to species conservation and ecosystem resilience.

Part of a wider business toolkit

Overall, IUCN RHINO forms part of a broader landscape of emerging methodologies and frameworks aimed at strengthening corporate accountability for nature. Integral to this, the Nature Positive Initiative (NPI), a coalition of 27 leading sustainability-focused organisations, including IUCN, has developed a universal set of "State of Nature Metrics" that will soon be finalised. IUCN RHINO is already well-positioned to support application of these metrics, helping inform and drive corporate ambition to reverse nature loss by 2030.

Together, these initiatives signal increasing momentum toward science-based approaches that enable companies to measure, manage and report their impacts on biodiversity in credible and consistent ways, which is good news for business and nature, - said Sneary.

View the IUCN RHINO launch video - https://youtu.be/6P9oQL949D8

Read the IUCN RHINO Technical Source Document here.

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