On Earth Day 2021, Klarna launched its global Give One initiative together with its strategic sustainability partner Milkywire, bringing to life a 1% pledge for the planet. Klarna has contributed to meaningful impact through Give One, and so far have paid out $13.6 million out of $16.3 million committed and supported 53 environmental initiatives since 2021, contributing to several of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, including climate action, life below water, and life on land. 

Some key highlights and achievements below:

•  >4,9 Million saplings of native trees planted across 10 countries and 3 continents. 

• 700,000 hectares of forest in the upper Amazon with enhanced protection against illegal extraction, thanks to Amazon Frontlines efforts to help indigenous guards to detect and document threats to their territories.

• 195 hectares of wildflower-rich grassland and habitats created by Buglife across the U.K. to fight pollinator decline, benefiting bees, butterflies, moths, flies, hoverflies, beetles, wasps, ants as well as a range of other wildlife. 

Find the detailed results and progress since the launch in our Progress report here. Now expanding on our ongoing work to put the pledge into practice, Milkywire and Klarna are excited to unveil the Nature Transformation Fund. This collaborative fund is designed to ensure sustained support for impactful initiatives benefiting both people and biodiversity. Informed by our experiences and insights so far, it represents a strategic evolution of Give One and a call to action for others to join us.

Navigating the path to effective corporate action for nature poses complex questions, many of which we are still exploring. Here are our key learnings so far:

1. Balancing short and long-term goals. Policy advocacy and other strategic work that requires long-term engagement is often not prioritised, because funders tend to favour short-term projects with quantifiable results. However, strategic work is necessary to create the right enabling conditions for conservation and restoration.

2. Addressing environmental and social issues in lock-step. Social and environmental sustainability is deeply interlinked, but their interconnectedness is often overlooked by funders. Integrated approaches, i.e. building community resilience and strengthening livelihoods, are important for effectiveness and long-term sustainability of environmental initiatives. Give One did exactly that, projects selected were in the nexus between human development, nature and climate.

3. Promoting long term financial sustainability. Conservation and restoration are long-term efforts and therefore require sustained finance over time. Innovative finance solutions like biodiversity credits, habitat banks, and endowments funds can play an important role to build financial sustainability and continuity, allowing organisations on the ground to continue project activities even when the grant financing is over. 

The Nature Transformation Fund is a curated portfolio of projects which integrates these perspectives. It is open to any company that seeks to contribute to Global Biodiversity Targets and support transformative environmental change. Milkywire will keep managing the fund, aiming to leverage insights gained from its partnership with Klarna to encourage more companies to participate.

In practical terms, the evolution from Give One to the Nature Transformation Fund means that Klarna and Milkywire will transition the Give One initiative into its next chapter, shaping it into a Nature Transformation Fund. Klarna remains committed to their 24.5M USD* pledge for the planet, and continues to allocate this funding to impactful initiatives just like before. This is done in addition to Klarna taking responsibility for its carbon emissions through contributions to the Milkywire Climate Transformation Fund.

Our societies and global economy are embedded in nature. Therefore we firmly believe that all companies have a role to play in closing the funding gap for biodiversity. Companies like Klarna, with low dependencies on nature, have less daunting work ahead to transform their value chains to mitigate negative impact on biodiversity. Therefore they can play a key role in providing complementary funding to areas which otherwise fall short of sustained support. 

In our efforts to foster collective action, Milkywire and Klarna will be hosting an invite only digital dialogue to share best practices and engage with like-minded companies. Sign up for access, as we explore innovative ways to contribute to the planet’s health and biodiversity.

* This includes contributions to the Climate Transformation Fund as well as donation related transaction and management costs.

Author: Milkywire