Turning data into boardroom decisions

The newly released Our Environment 2025 report is a sobering, science-driven assessment of Aotearoa New Zealand’s environment. Jointly produced by the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ, the report goes beyond a stocktake – it is a system-level diagnosis of cause and effect, consequence and opportunity.

For directors, the report underscores a central truth: climate change is not a future threat. It is a present and accelerating risk that intersects every domain of governance.

At the launch event held in conjunction with the Aotearoa Circle, Secretary for the Environment James Palmer delivered a clear message: “The data guides us.”

His remarks reinforced the centrality of science and evidence in charting both risks and responses. He added that the data points to a promising future, but only if we keep building on what we’re doing.

This mix of urgency and possibility sets the tone for the challenges and choices ahead.

From a boardroom perspective, the implications are twofold. First, climate-related risks – physical, transition and liability – are intensifying and compounding with social, economic and ecological stressors. Second, science-backed data now places climate accountability firmly within the governance domain.

Palmer highlighted that “a lot of infrastructure and homes [are] in harm’s way”, reinforcing that these risks have become real. The report details how climate change acts as an amplifier of environmental degradation across domains from land and freshwater to marine ecosystems and air quality.

Increased frequency of extreme weather events, warming seas and altered precipitation patterns are destabilising agriculture, infrastructure, ecosystems and communities.

Notably, the report forecasts regional erosion increases of up to 233 per cent under high-emissions scenarios by 2090. As Palmer observed, “severe wet weather accelerates and mobilises soils” – an insight with clear implications for property, infrastructure and land value.

New Zealand’s gross greenhouse gas emissions remain high, driven predominantly by agriculture (48 per cent), energy (22 per cent) and transport (17 per cent) – as of 2022. Emissions intensity per capita continues to outpace many OECD peers.

For boards overseeing high-emitting sectors, the report’s data should trigger immediate review of transition strategies.

Palmer reminded leaders that “the choices we make in business impact on our environment”. The global marketplace increasingly demands environmental integrity. Verifiable emissions data and nature-positive sourcing are becoming prerequisites, not preferences.

The report also highlights severe threats to biodiversity, with more than 90 per cent of assessed indigenous marine bird species and nearly 80 per cent of freshwater species at risk of extinction. “Our endemic biodiversity continues to be threatened,” Palmer stated, underlining the urgency of ecosystem protection.

For directors in agriculture, aquaculture, tourism and food sectors, degraded ecosystems pose tangible risks to operations and financial performance. Access to water, pollination services, and even insurance coverage, is increasingly tied to ecological health. Boards must elevate biodiversity and freshwater security from sustainability footnotes to strategic priorities.

Emerging issues such as groundwater depletion, loss of green space and microplastic contamination are also flagged as critical areas to watch, signals of long-term degradation that boards cannot afford to ignore.

The evidence is clear: climate disruption is already affecting health, housing and livelihoods. Cyclones and floods have displaced communities, damaged infrastructure and exposed insurance gaps. The science signals further escalation.

Adaptation planning is no longer optional – it is core to long-term value protection. Boards must reassess asset locations, supply chain continuity, insurance resilience and emergency preparedness.

Palmer challenged leaders to think ahead: “As we think forward as a country, we have some big decisions to make.”

Crucially, the report calls for better integration of mātauranga Māori, systems thinking and place-based knowledge. For boards, this expands the governance lens from compliance to intergenerational stewardship and inclusive resilience.

Palmer noted the pivotal role of the private sector in leading the further change required. Directors are positioned to drive systems change, from strategy and culture to capital allocation and stakeholder engagement.

Boards should act on five imperatives:

1. Embed science in risk oversight: Integrate climate, biodiversity and environmental data into board-level reporting and decision-making.
2. Link risk and opportunity: Understand climate not just as a liability, but as a driver of innovation and strategic renewal.
3. Hold management accountable: Require evidence-based transition and adaptation plans with measurable targets.
4. Build governance capability: Invest in climate literacy and sector-specific scenario planning for boards.
5. Engage transparently: Communicate environmental performance to stakeholders with honesty, humility and a commitment to improvement.

Our Environment 2025 is a stark, data-rich reminder that business as usual is incompatible with planetary boundaries. But it also reflects, in Palmer’s words, a “story of restoration, of turning the ship around. Small things add up to meaningful change.”

Boards that embrace this challenge will not only mitigate risk; they will shape a more resilient, equitable and sustainable future.

 

*AI assisted