Use of environmental data in the finance sector

Overview

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is a public body investing public money into research and innovation in the UK. The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) is one of its 7 research councils, acting as the UK's leading funder of environmental science. Through its funding of the UK Environmental Data Service (EDS), NERC-UKRI helps ensure that valuable environmental data remains findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable for the long term.

As part of its commitment to driving growth via the Industrial Strategy, NERC-UKRI recognises that environmental data, green technologies and advanced analytics will play an increasingly important role across the economy, including within the financial sector. New data sources and analytical tools have the potential to unlock valuable insights into environmental risks, opportunities and decision-making.

The purpose of this survey

The EDS is currently being recommissioned, creating an opportunity to better understand:

• How the finance sector currently uses environmental data
• Where existing data and insight gaps exist
• What future data needs are emerging
• How environmental science outputs can better support financial sector decision-making
• Opportunities to increase the use and value of environmental data across sectors

The survey findings will help shape the future direction of the EDS and inform how environmental science can better contribute to the needs of financial institutions and regulators.

Who is running the survey?

The survey has been developed collaboratively across NERC-UKRI. It is being administered by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), which hosts the Polar Data Centre, part of the EDS network.

For questions or further information about the survey, feel free to contact:

• Beatrix Schlarb-Ridley – beatrix@bas.ac.uk
• Pilvi Saarikoski – pilchi@bas.ac.uk

Opportunities with NERC-UKRI

To get direct updates from the NERC funding team on opportunities in this space, please email FinancialProfessionalBusinessServices@esrc.ukri.org, 'FAO Green finance'.

Survey format

The survey is:

• Completely anonymous
• Entirely voluntary, with all questions optional

To help ensure the most valuable insights are captured, respondents are encouraged to prioritise answering the six primary questions. Additional secondary questions are also included, and responses to these would be greatly appreciated where time allows.

Why your views matter

Taking part in this survey means you will be contributing to shaping future environmental data services.