The 2026 Nature and Biodiversity Challenge, an initiative of the World Economic Forum’s innovation platform, is seeking startups capable of making restoration faster, more measurable and more financially viable
Fundo Vale has been invited to serve as an Ecosystem Partner for the 2026 UpLink Nature and Biodiversity Challenge, an initiative of the World Economic Forum’s innovation platform aimed at identifying and promoting startups with scalable solutions to reverse land degradation worldwide. The initiative, supported by Mercuria Energy Group, was launched on April 22, International Mother Earth Day, and focuses on unlocking innovation and investment to restore ecosystems with greater speed, precision and impact.
UpLink is a global innovation ecosystem focused on early-stage impact ventures. The platform connects entrepreneurs with capital, visibility, networks and expertise to accelerate solutions in critical areas such as climate, nature, water, food, health and the circular economy.
“As an Ecosystem Partner, Fundo Vale joins a group of leading global organizations that contribute technical expertise, connections and strategic support to accelerate the impact of sustainable solutions. Our role includes supporting the mobilization of entrepreneurs and participating in evaluation sessions for finalist startups. For Fundo Vale, it is very important to advance the global restoration agenda at scale,” explains Juliana Vilhena, Fundo Vale’s strategy, management and impact manager.
Scaling up land restoration
The 2026 Nature and Biodiversity Challenge centers on scaling up land restoration. The stakes are clear: up to 40% of the planet’s land is already degraded, directly affecting food security and climate resilience, while threatening half of global GDP. Failure to act could cost around US$23 trillion by 2050. At the same time, there is an annual financing gap of approximately US$278 billion for restoration, preventing promising initiatives from reaching scale.
The initiative is based on the recognition of three structural barriers currently limiting large-scale restoration: capital does not reach the right projects at the right time; outcomes are not measured reliably enough to attract investment-grade financing; and restoration is still largely viewed as a regulatory compliance cost rather than a business opportunity.
The 2026 Nature and Biodiversity Challenge seeks solutions in three main areas:
- Spatial intelligence and planning tools: making restoration outcomes traceable and investable through technologies for land assessment, intervention planning and landscape-scale monitoring, as well as data infrastructure to support nature-based investments and biodiversity risk disclosure;
- Degraded soil restoration: unlocking food security and supply chain financing through innovations that regenerate soil biological health, make soil carbon and biodiversity measurable and financeable, and address invasive species that compromise soil structure and accelerate degradation;
- Restoration of mined areas: through business models that accelerate land recovery in an economically viable way, financial structures that make progressive restoration investable beyond regulatory requirements, and solutions that reduce recovery time and improve ecological outcomes in affected areas.
In addition to Fundo Vale, the initiative’s Ecosystem Partners include Anglo American, C Minds, Cool Climate Collective, Ericsson, NatureFinance, OCP, Oji Holdings Corporation, Salesforce and UNESCO.
The winners will join a global innovation ecosystem with exclusive opportunities, targeted support and strategic connections. The deadline for submissions is June 4. For more information, click here.