From October 21 to November 1, the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (“COP16”) was held in Cali, Colombia. Under the theme of Peace with Nature, COP16 brought together governments, companies, research institutes and international organizations from all over the world to explore solutions for biodiversity conservation. As the first Conference of the Parties following the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework adopted during COP15, COP 16 reviewed progress in its implementation.

Target 15 of the Kunming-Montreal Framework encourages companies to regularly monitor, assess, and transparently disclose their risks, opportunities, dependencies, and impacts on biodiversity. Tencent also believes companies should support more targets, such as species monitoring and conservation, biodiversity mainstreaming, and sustainable consumption transition.

Responding to the Kunming-Montreal Framework, Tencent issued a Biodiversity Statement in 2022. An expression of commitment, it pledged action to protect nature, establishing a governance structure overseen by the board of directors and managed by the ESG Working Group. The overarching goal: to ensure the effective implementation of biodiversity conservation programs. In the Biodiversity Statement, Tencent articulated its strategies and approaches to biodiversity conservation, identifying three main pathways: eco-friendly operations, innovative application of technologies, and enhancing public accessibility to nature.

Tencent has translated its commitment to biodiversity conservation into concrete actions:

Eco-friendly Operations

Tencent is committed to reducing its dependence on nature and leveraging its influence to export positive ecological impact. Meanwhile, to increase transparency, Tencent discloses its nature-related governance, strategy, risk management, specific initiatives, goals and targets in its annual ESG report with reference to international frameworks.

• Nature-Related Assessment and Management: Tencent has used TNFD's LEAP methodology to conduct nature-related risk assessments, identifying the company's dependencies, impacts, risks, and opportunities. The results can be used to guide operations and the supply chain in developing nature-related strategies.
• Recycling to Reduce Waste and Protect the Ecosystem: Tencent has teamed up with the Mangrove Conservation Foundation and Willflying Coffee to recycle coffee grounds. Coffee grounds were collected and composted to be used as fertilizers for ecological conservation (including for the Futian Mangrove Ecological Park), which promotes the reduction and recycling of waste while contributing to biodiversity conservation.

Innovative Applications of Technologies

Applying cloud computing, artificial intelligence and internet technologies, Tencent provides innovative solutions for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem protection.

• Actions for All: Tencent launched the Nature Positive Action for All, developing the Nature Positive Mini Program to record and motivate employees' daily green behaviors in commuting, dining, and office, which can quantify their performance in tackling climate change and protecting biodiversity.
• Species Recognition: Tencent Charity Foundation launched the Snow Leopard Conservation Program in 2021, developing a species recognition and data management platform with the snow leopard as the core species, which can identify 31 species in alpine habitats. In 2024, the recognition model was further upgraded by applying the underlying capabilities of the visual versatile monitoring model YOLO-World, which expands the categories of protectable species and can be applied to different ecosystems. Meanwhile, Tencent has also developed the Wildlife Friend Mini Program, a digital tool for citizen science projects, to engage the public in identifying species.

Public Access to Nature

Through its products and services, Tencent enhances public access to nature and promotes public awareness and an understanding of the value of biodiversity, advancing the progress of biodiversity mainstreaming.

• Public Participation: Tencent Charity Foundation, together with partners including SEE Foundation, Mangrove Foundation, and Chinese National Geography, promotes biodiversity mainstreaming through birdwatching activities, making it easier for the public to participate in ecological activities. Tencent has developed the WeBirder Mini Program, which is equipped with a database that stores information on 1,500 bird species, and a photo identification function that allows users to recognize birds easily while obtaining relative information. Further, users can track birds’ flyways with the help of GPS and AI image recognition technology embedded in WeBirder. Scientific research organizations can use the data that users upload through this mini program.
• Public Science: Tencent used game technology to generate a digital shape and digital habitat of a giant panda. Using Tencent's Hunyuan model, Tencent helped create the world's first "Virtual Giant Panda" that can communicate and convey science. Through interaction with this panda, the public can chat, take photos with it, learn about biodiversity conservation, and contribute to the panda habitat public welfare programme.

Tencent's biodiversity conservation practices have been included in “Making Peace with Nature: Business and Industry Solutions, A Collection of Representative Cases in China,” a cases report by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment in China. Therefore, Tencent was invited as a corporate representative to participate in the side event at COP 16 to share on-site its experience in biodiversity mainstreaming and technology support for biodiversity conservation.

Upholding its vision and mission of Value for Users, Tech for Good, Tencent will continue to apply innovative products and services to protect the natural environment and fulfil its commitment to biodiversity conservation.