Offshore wind can play an important role in scaling renewable energy and supporting decarbonization. However, its expansion must be planned and delivered in ways that safeguard biodiversity, strengthen marine ecosystem conservation, and support credible Nature-Positive outcomes.
As Parties gather at CBD COP17 under the motto Taking Action for Nature, the first global review of collective progress on the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework provides an important moment to demonstrate how renewable energy deployment can contribute to biodiversity goals.
GINGR, the joint initiative of IUCN and the Renewables Grid Initiative, will convene a side event to introduce the Offshore Wind Nature-Positive Contribution Framework as a practical approach to advancing biodiversity-sensitive offshore wind deployment.
The new GINGR framework, co-developed by IUCN, RGI and Bluedot Associates provides a methodology to define, measure, monitor and report the Nature-Positive contributions of offshore wind projects. It aims to help stakeholders move beyond biodiversity safeguards and impact mitigation towards measurable and quantitative Nature-Positive contributions.
The session will help participants understand the framework’s purpose, scope, and emerging approach to measuring and communicating nature contribution; create space for dialogue on practical application with governments, industry, financial institutions, civil society, and technical experts; and invite feedback, collaboration, and future piloting opportunities.
📍IUCN Pavilion, Forum A, Blue Zone, Yerevan, Armenia 📅 26 October 2026 🕟 15:00 – 16:15 (AMT)
COP CBD17 Side Event: Launching GINGR’s Nature-Positive Framework for Offshore Wind: From Measurement to Contribution
Keynote
- Ajay Bhushan Pandey, Vice President, Investment Solutions, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
Framework Introduction
- Neil Cousins, Founder and Director, Bluedot Associates Ltd and Lead Author of the Framework
Panel Discussion
- Antonella Battaglini, CEO, Renewables Grid Initiative
- Rachel Asante Owusu, Senior Programme Coordinator, Climate Change and Energy Transition, IUCN
- Neil Cousins, Founder and Director, Bluedot Associates Ltd and Lead Author of the Framework
- Gavin Edwards, Executive Director, Nature Positive Initiative
- Nicholas Macfarlane, Head of Conservation Science and Technology, Co-chair of Metrics WG, IUCN