The Biodiversity Council welcomed the opportunity offered by the Government of South Australia to review the South Australian State of the Environment Report and to make recommendations to assist the state to move to nature-positive by 2030 while recognising the changing climate.

South Australia’s biodiversity is declining rapidly; it suffers from a legacy of past and current pressures, a few of which are largely outside of the control of the present people of South Australia.

South Australia is in a good position to take advantage of novel conservation interventions and emerging biodiversity markets and needs to prepare for their rapid growth. A nature-positive future of improving the state of biodiversity, requires increased government partnerships with First Peoples, community, philanthropy, not-for-profits and business. This requires co-design and co-prioritisation of projects. Difficult discussions around rewilding and assisted migration need to start now.

Cite this report as: Biodiversity Council (2023), South Australia’s biodiversity in a changing climate: the path to nature positive by 2030.