[Position Paper] Scaling Nature-Based Solutions for Net-Zero

The Rimba Collective Builds Supply Chain Resilience through Protection & Enhancement of Natural Capital

Aligning Beyond- and Within-Value-Chain Mitigation with the SBTi’s Evolving Framework for Scope 3 Emissions

In a world racing against time to limit global warming, corporate climate action has never been more urgent—or more complex. The Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has long been the compass guiding companies toward credible net-zero commitments. Now, with the release of its updated Net-Zero Standard Version 2, SBTi is taking a welcome step forward: raising the bar on accountability, while offering pragmatic pathways for businesses struggling with the realities of traceability of their value chains. At Lestari Capital, we welcome this as an important evolution for scaling much needed action for scope 3 emissions reductions.

A Turning Point for Corporate Climate Action

Reaching global net-zero emissions by 2050 is one of the defining challenges of our time. Companies must not only set ambitious targets but also demonstrate credible, scalable actions aligned with science-based pathways. For many sectors—especially those with intricate and opaque value chains—Scope 3 emissions remain the most difficult hurdle.

The SBTi has been instrumental in defining what credible corporate climate leadership looks like. Its updated Net-Zero Standard, published in March 2025, introduces several key improvements for Scope 3 target-setting, including:

Prioritization of Scope 3 emissions based on impact
Recognition of activity pool and supply shed approaches
Inclusion of indirect mitigation as a time-bound, complementary measure
Increased focus on Beyond Value Chain Mitigation (BVCM)

Addressing Complexity in Supply Chains

As a natural capital investor supporting large-scale corporate investments in ecosystem restoration and conservation within sourcing landscapes, we witness firsthand the challenges companies face in addressing Scope 3 emissions. Global supply chains are complex and opaque, often lacking the traceability that current frameworks demand. Yet, these very landscapes are critical battlegrounds to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss.

They are also places where value chain impacts can be directly remediated—not only to reduce emissions and protect biodiversity but also to build resilient, productive supply chains.

The SBTi’s recognition of activity pool and supply shed approaches is a welcomed advancement. For companies sourcing commodities like palm oil, pulp, or rubber—where materials flow through multiple intermediaries—setting credible emissions targets has been a persistent challenge. By validating interventions at a supply shed level, the updated standard enables more inclusive yet scientifically robust climate action.

This is the space where the Rimba Collective operates.

The Rimba Collective: Bridging Finance and Ecosystem Resilience

We mobilize corporate investments into verified conservation and restoration outcomes across Southeast Asia’s critical forest ecosystems. Our mission is to protect and restore the natural capital underpinning our corporate partners’ businesses while supporting sustainable livelihoods and community well-being.

Our model ensures that as companies pursue direct decarbonization within their operational control, they also invest in the health and resilience of the landscapes and natural capital their supply chains depend upon. At the same time, they support local communities in developing sustainable livelihoods, further enabling positive outcomes for climate, biodiversity, and supply chain productivity.

Indirect Mitigation and Beyond Value Chain Mitigation

The draft SBTi standard’s acknowledgment of indirect mitigation as a time-limited measure reflects a balanced and pragmatic approach. Not all emissions can be abated immediately; however, this must not become an excuse for inaction. Mechanisms like the Rimba Collective offer companies a credible pathway to address hard-to-reach emissions today while they continue working toward long-term, science-based reductions through the mitigation hierarchy.

The enhanced recognition of Beyond Value Chain Mitigation (BVCM) is another positive development. For BVCM to fulfil its potential, it must be clearly defined, rooted in environmental integrity, and aligned with global net-zero goals. Equally important, it must be practical and scalable, capable of channelling finance toward high-impact nature-based solutions delivering benefits not only for carbon, but also biodiversity, communities, and landscape resilience.

For the world to achieve its climate and biodiversity goals, scalable action must be incentivized across multiple fronts—including high-quality, verified BVCM.

Why Nature-Based Solutions in Supply Landscapes Matter

Our experience shows that investing in natural capital protection within sourcing landscapes is not a distraction from core decarbonization efforts. It is a strategic imperative. Healthy, intact ecosystems underpin sustainable, productive supply chains. Thriving sourcing landscapes enhance long-term business resilience. And in regions where emissions reductions are difficult to measure at source, large-scale interventions at sourcing landscape offer a credible, science-aligned, and impactful response

The SBTi’s updated standard creates an important opportunity: to bridge ambition with action and to scale finance flows into the ecosystems that sustain our planet. But this opportunity will only be realized if definitions are clear, criteria robust, and corporate contributions directed toward interventions delivering real, measurable impact.

Our Call to Action

As the SBTi continues refining its Net-Zero Standard, we urge:

1. Recognition of Robust Supply-Shed Solutions

Explicitly acknowledge supply shed and activity pool approaches as valid pathways for Scope 3 target-setting. Ensure sectors with limited traceability can engage meaningfully. Establish a pathway for commodity-specific definitions of Within-Value-Chain Mitigation (WVCM) related to mitigation actions at supply-shed scale.”

2. Facilitation of Partnerships Through Improved Definitions
A partnership approach is essential to achieve carbon neutrality at the scale and speed needed in sourcing landscapes. Restrictive WVC definitions disincentivize collective efforts. Flexibility is needed to allow for long-term, multi-company collaboration in dynamic supply chains.

3. Clear and Robust Definition of Beyond Value Chain Mitigation (BVCM)
Provide science-based criteria, including a definition of “high integrity,” to ensure BVCM investments deliver additional, permanent, and verifiable outcomes aligned with global net-zero objectives.

4. Balanced Focus on Co-Benefits Beyond Carbon
Encourage actions that yield multiple ecosystem service outcomes—including biodiversity protection, community livelihoods, and supply chain resilience. Real incentives are needed for Beyond the Value Chain mitigation that achieves these multiple benefits.

Conclusion

Net zero is not a distant aspiration. It is a shared responsibility one we must tackle together with clarity, urgency, and integrity. The Rimba Collective, brought together by Lestari Capital, stands ready to support this next chapter. By blending corporate finance with conservation expertise, we offer a scalable, replicable model to drive meaningful change, one that aligns with the SBTi’s Net-Zero Standard and addresses today’s supply chain realities.

We call on companies, investors, policymakers, and the SBTi to foster flexibility where needed, maintain credibility, and recognize landscape-scale, supply shed-based solutions as vital components of Scope 3 target-setting. Together, we can accelerate investments that protect nature, stabilize the climate, and build resilience for communities and businesses worldwide.