The main indirect drivers of biodiversity loss are the unsustainable patterns of production, consumption, resource use and trade underlying the direct drivers discussed in the previous section. These patterns are entrenched in societal values and behaviours, and can only be tackled via transformative change: fundamental, system-wide reorganisation across technological, economic and social factors, including paradigms, goals and values. In recognition of this fact, pillar 3 of the EU-BDS 2030 is dedicated to enabling transformative change, which in turn calls for transformative governance. Pillar 3 proposes a new European biodiversity governance framework to build on an integrated whole-of-society approach while stepping up implementation and enforcement of EU environmental legislation. A roadmap will map biodiversity commitments and guide their implementation. Its key elements include administrative capacity building, transparency, stakeholder dialogue, and participatory governance towards ensuring co-responsibility and co-ownership by all relevant actors. In 2023 the Commission will assess the progress and suitability of this governance framework, and consider whether a legally binding approach is needed.

The governance framework introduces a new initiative on sustainable corporate governance to embed social and environmental interests into business strategies, including a proposal (2021) for a Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, to amend the existing reporting requirements of businesses under the Non-Financial Reporting Directive with a view to enhancing the scope and quality of environment-related disclosures. Private and public funding of at least € 20 billion annually, needed for investment in Natura 2000, green infrastructure and other nature-based solutions (NBS), will be mobilised via programmes in the next long-term EU budget. Investment in nature and biodiversity is also a significant part of the EU's climate action budget, as well as the focus of Invest EU and a priority for the European Green Deal Investment Plan. The EU Sustainable Finance Taxonomy Regulation (2020) supported by a Renewed Sustainable Finance Strategy (2021), will guide investment towards a green recovery and NBS deployment. A forthcoming delegated act under the Taxonomy Regulation will cover economic activities specifically contributing to protecting and restoring biodiversity and ecosystems.

Transformative change includes integrating the value of nature in production systems as well as decision-making. In order to shift the tax burden from labour to pollution, under-priced resources and other externalities, the EU is promoting tax systems and pricing that reflect environmental costs, such as biodiversity loss, via ‘user pays’ and ‘polluter pays’ principles. Biodiversity considerations are being integrated in decision-making via methods such as life-cycle analyses and natural capital accounting to measure the environmental footprint of products and organisations.

Research, innovation and knowledge exchange will be key to gathering the best data and developing ways to prioritise ‘green’ over ‘grey’ solutions towards transformative change. The Horizon Europe (HE) long-term strategic research agenda for biodiversity includes a dedicated Science Service to provide decision makers with timely research-based options for policymaking on biodiversity, and step up research-based implementation of biodiversity commitments, with increased funding. HE missions will help fill knowledge gaps towards improving ecosystem health. A dedicated European Biodiversity Partnership Biodiversa+ was launched in 2021 to make the bridge between science, policy and practice, and put nature on a path of recovery (see the section on HE projects for more details). The new European Skills Agenda, focused on training and re-skilling the workforce across sectors, will play a key role in the green transition and the fight against biodiversity loss. A Council Recommendation on learning for environmental sustainability (2022) will help integrate biodiversity and ecosystems into school, higher education and professional training.

Intensive agriculture and food systems have caused biodiversity loss via land-use change, climate change, pollution and overexploitation. Apart from addressing these direct drivers via concrete targets for sustainable agriculture described in the previous section, the Farm to Fork Strategy (F2F) aims to tackle indirect drivers through transformative change in the European food production system. In addition to agriculture, manufacturing, processing, retailing, packaging and transportation of food make a major contribution to air, soil and water pollution and GHG emissions, and have a profound impact on biodiversity. On the other hand, environmental degradation and biodiversity loss have contributed to reducing the resilience and sustainability of food systems against recurring droughts, floods, forest fires and pest-and-disease outbreaks.

F2F aims to reduce the environmental footprint of the EU food system and strengthen its resilience, ensure health, social benefits, and food security in the face of climate change and biodiversity loss, and lead a global transition towards competitive sustainability from farm to fork. It aims to ensure that the food chain – covering food production, transport, distribution, marketing and consumption – has a neutral or positive environmental impact, preserving and restoring the land, freshwater and sea-based resources on which the food system depends; helping mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts; protecting land, soil, water, air, plant and animal health and welfare; and reversing the loss of biodiversity.