Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

What Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services does

IPBES is an independent intergovernmental body established on 21 April 2012 in Panama City by 94 governments, with membership now approaching 150 states. It functions as the principal intergovernmental science-policy interface for biodiversity and ecosystem services, operating outside the UN system while relying on UNEP to provide secretariat services under a host-country arrangement with the Government of Germany. The secretariat is headquartered in Bonn and supported by a distributed network of Technical Support Units (TSUs) located in Montreal, Amsterdam, Trondheim, Frankfurt, Paris, Cambridge, and Tokyo, each dedicated to a specific assessment methodology.

The organization's core output is a portfolio of assessment products: 14 completed assessments spanning a global biodiversity assessment, four regional assessments (Africa, Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe and Central Asia), and thematic assessments covering pollinators, invasive alien species, land degradation and restoration, sustainable use of wild species, values of nature, the biodiversity-water-food-health nexus, transformative change, and—most recently—business impacts on biodiversity. Methodological infrastructure includes the IPBES Conceptual Framework (a six-element model integrating nature, nature's contributions to people, and governance), the TRACK impact-tracking database, and structured assessment guides. Supporting products include e-learning modules, a multi-language glossary, the IPBES Podcast (Season 5 live), and policy support toolkits, with the Second Global Assessment, Monitoring Assessment, and Spatial Planning and Connectivity Assessment currently in development.

IPBES generates no commercial revenue. It is funded entirely through voluntary contributions from member states to the IPBES Trust Fund, supplemented by private-sector and foundation donors (e.g., Kering, H&M, AXA Research Fund, BNP Paribas Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation). All assessment outputs, policy tools, and capacity-building resources are distributed free of charge to member governments, observers, registered stakeholders, and the public. Its primary "customers" are the ~150 member states that consume its assessments to inform national biodiversity strategies and multilateral negotiations under frameworks such as the Convention on Biological Diversity; secondary stakeholders include scientific experts, NGOs, the private sector, and Indigenous and local knowledge holders.

Name

Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

Legal name

Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

Website

https://ipbes.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

IPBES is an independent intergovernmental body, established in 2012 by 94 governments, that produces policy-relevant scientific assessments on biodiversity and ecosystem services for its ~150 member states, supported by a distributed network of Technical Support Units.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Science & Policy

NAICS

Administration of Environmental Quality Programs (9241), Administration of Conservation Programs (92412)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Ecosystem Services & Natural Capital Assessment / Valuation (EUAHAHAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Nature & Biodiversity Reporting (TNFD, natural capital) (EUAHAJAM), Biodiversity Baseline Studies & Long-Term Monitoring Programs (EUAHAHAE)

Keywords

• Biodiversity assessments
• Ecosystem services science
• Policy support tools
• Capacity building programmes
• Intergovernmental science policy

Headquarters

HQ city

Bonn

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Voluntary Trust Fund Contributions: IPBES is funded through generous voluntary contributions from its member States to the IPBES Trust Fund. This is the primary funding mechanism for all IPBES activities.

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

IPBES produces policy-relevant scientific assessments of biodiversity and ecosystem services at global, regional, and thematic levels, and supports member States with policy tools, methodological guides, capacity-building, and stakeholder engagement. Its portfolio spans 14 completed assessments plus the new Business and Biodiversity Assessment, accompanied by the TRACK impact tracking database, e-learning modules, policy support tools and methodologies, and the IPBES Glossary.

Product overview

IPBES is an independent intergovernmental body that serves as the science-policy interface for biodiversity and ecosystem services. The organization produces a portfolio of assessment products including global assessments, regional assessments (covering Africa, Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe and Central Asia), and thematic assessments addressing specific topics such as pollinators, invasive alien species, sustainable use, land degradation, values, nexus (biodiversity-water-food-health interlinkages), transformative change, and business impacts on biodiversity. Beyond assessments, IPBES offers supporting tools including the TRACK impact tracking database, e-learning modules, a glossary, policy support methodologies, and communication products such as the IPBES Podcast. Currently under development are the second global assessment, monitoring assessment, and spatial planning and connectivity assessment. The work programme operates through six objectives: assessing knowledge, building capacity, strengthening knowledge foundations, supporting policy, communicating and engaging, and improving platform effectiveness.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Comprehensive global-level assessment report evaluating the state of biodiversity and ecosystem services worldwide and providing policy-relevant findings for conservation and sustainable use, intended for member State Governments, observers, and policy stakeholders.
• Regional Assessment Reports Assessment reports covering biodiversity and ecosystem services at regional levels for Africa, Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe and Central Asia, providing regionally relevant findings to inform national and regional policy.
• Thematic Assessment Reports Focused assessments on specific biodiversity themes including pollinators, invasive alien species, sustainable use of wild species, land degradation and restoration, and values of nature, designed to inform targeted policy action.
• Nexus Assessment Thematic assessment examining interlinkages among biodiversity, water, food and health, using a nexus approach to inform integrated policy responses.
• Transformative Change Assessment Assessment report examining underlying causes of biodiversity loss and determinants of transformative change toward achieving the 2050 Vision for Biodiversity.
• Business and Biodiversity Assessment Methodological assessment categorizing how businesses depend on and impact biodiversity and nature's contributions to people, with criteria and indicators to support measurement and disclosure. Targeted at private sector users and member State regulators.
• Scenarios and Models Assessment Assessment report providing scenarios and models for biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services to support future projections and policy development.
• TRACK Impact Tracking Database Database that records, documents, and shares examples of the use of IPBES outputs in decision-making or science, demonstrating the real-world impact of IPBES assessments for policymakers, researchers, and stakeholders.
• IPBES Podcast (Nature Insight) Audio podcast series communicating IPBES findings, assessments, and biodiversity science to broad audiences; currently in Season 5 on PodBean.
• E-learning Modules Online learning resources explaining the IPBES Conceptual Framework and assessment processes, used for capacity building and stakeholder education across member States and observer organizations.
• Policy Support Tools and Methodologies Tools and methodologies developed to support policy instruments for biodiversity conservation, restoration, and sustainable use, intended for policy makers and practitioners in member States.
• IPBES Glossary Online searchable glossary providing definitions of terms used in IPBES reports to ensure consistent understanding across stakeholders and languages.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to $577 billion worth of annual global food production relies on direct contributions by pollinators (IPBES Pollinators Assessment)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Government of GermanycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013Germany hosts the IPBES Secretariat headquarters in Bonn. A host country agreement was finalized between UNEP and the Government of Germany for the presence of the IPBES secretariat in Bonn.
• Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013Memoranda of cooperation between the secretariats of individual biodiversity-related MEAs and the IPBES secretariat, as requested by the Plenary in decision IPBES-4/4, to enhance collaboration on science-policy interface matters.
• United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 April 2012At its first session in January 2013, the IPBES Plenary requested UNEP to provide the secretariat of IPBES, which would be solely accountable to the IPBES Plenary on policy and programmatic matters. UNEP provides administrative arrangements and staff for the IPBES secretariat.
• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Part of the collaborative partnership arrangement approved in IPBES-2/8, with UNESCO contributing to the institutional link between IPBES and the United Nations system.
• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Part of the collaborative partnership arrangement approved in IPBES-2/8, with FAO contributing to the institutional link between IPBES and the United Nations system.
• United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Part of the collaborative partnership arrangement approved in IPBES-2/8, with UNDP contributing to the institutional link between IPBES and the United Nations system.
• Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBiodiversity-related convention participating as observer and collaborating on science-policy interface matters related to the post-2020 global biodiversity framework.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves2 records

Broad incumbents

• World Resources Institute (WRI): WRI is a global research organisation that produces widely cited resources such as the Global Forest Watch and corporate sustainability tools, directly competing with IPBES as a source of authoritative environmental data and policy analysis.
• Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD): The CBD is a binding multilateral treaty with near-universal membership that sets the global biodiversity policy agenda (including the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework). IPBES supplies the scientific assessments that feed directly into CBD negotiations, making it both a partner and a closely adjacent incumbent.
• United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP): UNEP provides secretariat services to IPBES and is the broader UN system anchor for environmental policy. UNEP funds and commissions its own biodiversity and ecosystem research, making it both a host partner and a competing producer of environmental science.
• World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF): WWF is a major international conservation NGO with a large global network that produces its own Living Planet Report and influences biodiversity policy. It overlaps with IPBES in both scientific output and stakeholder engagement, especially on corporate biodiversity action.

Direct peers

• UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD): UNCCD is a sister Rio Convention to the CBD with a comparable intergovernmental structure and science-policy interface needs. The UNCCD Science-Policy Interface operates in the same niche pattern as IPBES and covers land degradation, a key thematic overlap with IPBES's Land Degradation and Restoration Assessment.
• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC): The IPCC is the most direct peer to IPBES: an intergovernmental science-policy assessment body of similar structure, member-state model, and assessment cadence, but focused on climate change rather than biodiversity. IPBES is widely described as the biodiversity analogue of the IPCC.
• International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN): IUCN is a membership-based conservation organisation that produces the authoritative IUCN Red List and global species assessments. It overlaps directly with IPBES in biodiversity science generation and is one of the most cited sources in IPBES assessments.

Emerging players

• Stockholm Resilience Centre: The Stockholm Resilience Centre is a leading research institute on planetary boundaries and resilience science that frequently contributes authors and concepts (such as the Nature's Contributions to People framing) to IPBES assessments. It is an emerging scientific thought leader in the same space.
• Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD): TNFD is a market-driven initiative providing the corporate nature-related disclosure framework that aligns directly with IPBES's Business and Biodiversity Assessment. It is an emerging player shaping the same private-sector nature agenda and a heavy user of IPBES science.
• Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON): GEO BON is an emerging scientific network coordinating biodiversity observations globally, feeding directly into IPBES assessments. It is a key technical partner and a more narrowly focused, data-driven analogue that could grow in influence as monitoring frameworks scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/ipbeschannel
• Facebookfacebook.com/ipbes
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ipbes
• Instagraminstagram.com/ipbes_
• Xx.com/IPBES

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services