Over 700 regional leaders, innovators, and policymakers gathered at the WWF Earth Summit 2025 in Singapore on Wednesday to accelerate Asia-Pacific’s climate and biodiversity agenda, with calls for urgent action and stronger cross-sector collaboration.
Hosted by WWF-Singapore, the third edition of the summit carried the theme “Climate. Nature. Transition.” and focused on aligning climate mitigation with nature-positive solutions.
“This year’s WWF Earth Summit brought together leaders across sectors with a clear message: we cannot solve the climate crisis without protecting nature,” said Vivek Kumar, Chief Executive Officer of WWF-Singapore and Vice-Chairman of the Southeast Asia Climate and Nature-based Solutions (SCeNe) Coalition. “Asia-Pacific is poised to lead, and WWF is committed to driving that momentum toward COP30 and beyond.”
A key announcement came from the SCeNe Coalition, which revealed plans to launch Version 2.0 of its AI-powered NbS (Nature-based Solutions) tool by mid-2025.
Initially launched in 2023, the platform will expand its coverage from two to six Southeast Asian countries and include 84 environmental and demographic data layers to support pre-feasibility assessments of carbon and biodiversity projects.
“Nature is no longer seen as a cost centre but as essential infrastructure for economic resilience,” said Kamal Seth, WWF-Singapore’s Climate & Sustainability Director. “From carbon markets to frameworks like the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures, we’re seeing nature fully integrated into business and finance strategies.”
Throughout the summit, speakers emphasized the need to mobilize $674 billion annually to tackle climate and biodiversity challenges. WWF called for a shift from compensation-based carbon credits to contribution models and highlighted blended finance and biodiversity credits as critical pathways for scaling NbS.
Case studies also showed how policy alignment with private sector action could bridge the gap between ambition and implementation.
Examples of mangrove restoration, urban greening, and community-based conservation efforts underscored the importance of local engagement and data-driven planning.
The event marked WWF’s growing role as a regional convenor of climate-nature action, drawing participation from its offices in Singapore, Indonesia, Australia, the US, and the international secretariat.
Business News Asia