Biodiversity is in an acute crisis. According to the UN Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), around one million species are threatened with extinction. Many within just a few decades. A development that is a consequence of human influence.
This is not just a question of nature and species, but of the future of humanity. Biodiversity is the basis for ecosystem services we all depend on, such as clean air, fertile soil, pollination and a stable climate.
Chance to make an impact
As one of Sweden's largest real estate companies with a focus on knowledge environments, which also includes large outdoor environments, Akademiska Hus has an important role to play. By planning, building and managing our campus areas with regard to natural values, we can really contribute to strengthening biodiversity locally.
"We are already doing a lot of good things here! Through our nature value inventories, we now also get a measure of how we are doing and can measure and ensure that we improve over time," says Erik Florman, Head of Sustainability at Akademiska Hus.
The entire value chain matters
But our impact extends beyond what biodiversity looks like on our campuses. The greatest impact on biodiversity occurs in all the materials we use and the way in which they have been produced. We therefore have a responsibility when it comes to the purchases we make. That is also why a survey has now been carried out.
By setting clear and strict requirements for biodiversity in procurements, a far greater impact can be achieved than we can do directly in our knowledge environments. It is not only about the company's own operations, but also about the impact along the entire value chain, from suppliers to end customers.
"For Akademiska Hus, this means that we need to gear up our work to identify and minimise negative impacts on nature, including in building materials, contracting activities and land use. It is both a responsibility and an opportunity for us, to be an actor that contributes to more biodiversity," says Erik Florman, Head of Sustainability.
Reporting requirements and expectations from our owner
In its ownership policy from February 2025, the government has tightened expectations of state-owned companies when it comes to sustainability work, including biodiversity. The policy emphasises that companies must act in a business-like, sustainable and exemplary manner, which means that they must integrate sustainability aspects into their operations and reporting.
"Biodiversity is not only an environmental issue, it is also a business-critical issue. For us at Akademiska Hus, this means that sustainability issues, including our impact on biodiversity, need to be fully integrated into our investment decisions, strategies and risk assessments," says Peter Anderson, CFO, Akademiska Hus.
In its ownership policy from February 2025, the government has tightened expectations of state-owned companies when it comes to sustainability work, including biodiversity. The policy emphasises that companies must act in a business-like, sustainable and exemplary manner, which means that they must integrate sustainability aspects into their operations and reporting.
Furthermore, Sweden, together with other countries, has adopted the global Kunming–Montreal framework for biodiversity under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). This framework, adopted at the COP15 meeting in Montréal, Canada, in December 2022, includes ambitious targets to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030. The goals include protecting at least 30 percent of the world's land and sea areas and restoring at least 30 percent of degraded ecosystems.
Mapping and report ready – what happens now?
Akademiska Hus has produced a report that compiles our indirect impact on biodiversity, in terms of the choice of materials in construction and the impact of different energy sources. The results show that there is potential to make a big difference and that it matters to what extent we consider issues linked to biodiversity in our procurements.
We have identified the materials that Akademiska Hus uses the most (see our Annual and Sustainability Report pages 89-90, link below) and based on that, we can prioritise what we should focus on. It is about what requirements we should set in our procurements in the first place, and how we should follow up on it.
"The work on what requirements we should set and how we do it will take place in 2025. This applies to both projects and management. We will also collaborate with our suppliers, as it emerged during the production of the report that our suppliers are also very interested in the issue and want to collaborate with us," says Alice Bocké, Sustainability Strategist, Akademiska Hus.
