Remarks by Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen at an Inter-American Development Bank Roundtable with Ministers and Private Sector Representatives

As Prepared for Delivery 

Thank you, President Goldfajn, for convening this roundtable, and thank you all for joining.  I am glad that we have been able to gather this group here today to discuss how businesses can support sustainable livelihoods and conservation in the Amazon and nature and biodiversity more broadly.

There is a pressing need to halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems and loss of biodiversity in the Amazon and globally.  I was heartened to see that the rate of deforestation in the Amazon fell by half in 2023, but there is still much work to be done. This includes maintaining this positive rate of progress while recognizing that other areas important for biodiversity in Brazil, notably the Cerrado, are not seeing the same reversals. 

This is so important because the loss of nature and biodiversity presents a significant economic threat.  Ecosystem services are vital to enabling sectors including agriculture, infrastructure, and tourism to thrive.  The loss of nature is also a key driver of climate change.  We cannot reach our climate goals without addressing deforestation.  But the need to address the loss of nature and biodiversity is also a significant economic opportunity. Conserving and restoring nature at scale can provide economic benefits for communities, businesses, and countries that far exceed the cost of conservation, with results ranging from higher agricultural output to reduced damage from disasters.

This morning, ministers from the Amazon region, President Goldfajn, and I met to affirm our commitment to protecting nature and biodiversity in the Amazon and to the IDB’s Amazonia Forever, which is helping support sustainable economic development in the region through financing, project preparation, and collaboration.  We are hopeful that this program will incentivize greater private sector investment in the region that supports nature.

There are many other opportunities for the private sector.  Increasing productivity in currently available agricultural areas can double agricultural production in Brazil without increasing deforestation, according to some estimates.  Businesses investing in their own operations and supply chains can reduce nature-related risks such as water availability.  Even the biodiversity of forests brings many potential business opportunities, as we have seen with the cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries.  And credible net-zero transition plans and investments in high-integrity carbon credits can both support nature and make economic sense.

The public sector should be enabling these opportunities.  Governments should be working to leverage domestic policy and resources to catalyze local investment, including through policies and programs in agriculture and infrastructure development.  We are doing this at home in the United States through the Inflation Reduction Act and other policies. 

We are also driving investments in emerging market and developing economies, including through the multilateral development banks and multilateral climate and environment funds.  Projects like the Amazon Bioeconomy Fund, backed by the IDB and the Green Climate Fund, help financial institutions in the region mobilize investments that support nature.  And we are also engaging with asset managers, banks, and pension funds around the world to increase their awareness of new and existing blended finance and derisking tools that can facilitate their pursuit of nature-aligned investments with a reasonable risk-to-return profile.

I understand the companies represented here today have significant ambition to support a thriving and sustainable Amazon region, providing sustainable livelihoods while restoring forests and preventing further deforestation.  I am confident that your commitment, ingenuity, and financing can make a difference.  Today, I very much look forward to hearing how you approach these issues and the opportunities you see and challenges you face as we progress toward shared climate and economic goals. 

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