The Deforestation Action Tracker 2023: An essential stocktake of finance sector action on deforestation

Global Canopy’s Deforestation Action Tracker monitors financial institutions with significant climate commitments including those in Race to Zero and Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), to track their action on deforestation, conversion and associated human rights abuses. The report is available now.

Despite global consensus on the need to decisively tackle deforestation, conversion and associated human rights abuses – including to achieve vital climate and nature targets – these continue unchecked. Progress in some places is eclipsed by ongoing global impacts. We are operating on borrowed time.

Following our baseline assessment of more than 550 financial institutions last year, Global Canopy has this year undertaken a full and detailed stocktake of action on deforestation by more than 700 financial institutions that have strong net-zero commitments as part of GFANZ or related groups.

75%

of financial institutions have no deforestation policy

Summary

• Assessing against best practice, our Deforestation Action Tracker finds that the sector is largely failing to act. 75% (536) of the financial institutions assessed still do not have a public deforestation policy, and just 10% (69) have a deforestation policy in place for all highest risk commodities. This shows a slight improvement on the baseline conducted in 2022, but far slower than the pace of action needed

• Financial institutions are therefore exposed to the growing regulatory, reporting and compliance risks around deforestation. Most are also misaligned with the urgent priority given to deforestation by the GFANZ leadership, which is also embedded in GFANZ transition guidance.

• Despite this very poor overall outlook, the Deforestation Action Tracker has identified pockets of progress: nearly half (44%) (317) of the financial institutions are involved in a collaborative sector initiative on deforestation or involved in advocating for legislation focussed on deforestation, conversion or associated human rights abuses. Small groups of frontrunning financial institutions are going further, including by innovating against strong 2025 targets, and working together towards eliminating agricultural commodity-driven deforestation. 

• Overall, we need to see greater improvement and faster progress over the next two years. If financial institutions want to make their net-zero targets a reality, they need to work toward eliminating commodity-driven deforestation, conversion and associated human rights abuses in their portfolios by 2025 or as soon as possible after that.

Recommendations

The report, An essential stocktake of finance sector action on deforestation, also includes recommendations for financial institutions. The Deforestation Action Tracker enables financial institutions and others to understand how the actions they are taking on deforestation, conversion, and associated human rights abuses match up against best practice and in relation to their peers.

Download the full report now to learn more about the assessment of the 713 financial institutions.

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Download the data

The assessments are based solely on publicly available information to encourage greater transparency from financial institutions. Any information publicly available on the financial institution’s websites during the assessment period, which ran from 22 May to 31 August 2023, was considered within the 2023 Deforestation Action Tracker assessments.

Details on how the financial institutions were assessed, including the full list of those included in the baseline review, is available in the methodology.

The previous DAT dataset prior to 18:00 GMT on 29 November 2023 was incorrect due to an error. If you downloaded it prior to this time, please re-download it for the accurate data.

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