The Bank of France, together with French academic partners, has launched a research chair to develop macroeconomic and financial models that incorporate risks linked to nature degradation. Hosted by Fondation du Risque, the initiative is designed to give public authorities and private sector decision-makers tools to assess how ecosystem erosion can affect growth, inflation, employment and financial stability. Over the medium term, the project aims to feed these tools into international work including NGFS, IPBES and IPCC discussions. The announcement argues that current central bank macroeconomic models do not adequately capture dependence on natural capital or the risks from its deterioration. It notes that more than half of global GDP depends directly on nature and cites the European Central Bank's estimate that 72% of euro area non-financial companies depend heavily on at least one ecosystem service. Research will be organized around three strands: short- and medium-term modelling of economic and financial risks, long-term modelling of impacts on sectors, growth and employment, and the development of datasets on corporate dependence on nature and the links between ecosystem conditions and sector productivity. A specific workstream will focus on water stress, including both water scarcity and worsening water quality in sectors such as agriculture, energy and other water-intensive industries. The chair brings together the Bank of France, École polytechnique, ENSAE Paris, CIRED, Paris School of Economics and the Foundation for Research on Biodiversity. The project is seeking at least EUR 2 million in additional funding.
Bank of France2026-07-07
Bank of France launches research chair to build macroeconomic and financial models for nature-related risks
The Bank of France and academic partners have launched a research chair to build macroeconomic and financial models for nature-related risks. The work will cover short-, medium- and long-term impacts of ecosystem degradation, supported by new datasets, with a specific focus on water stress. The project also aims to contribute to international workstreams and is seeking at least EUR 2 million in additional funding.