ENVestor South East Queensland

ENVestor is a coalition of government, private sector, industry, and community partners pioneering a disruptive approach to environmental restoration in South East Queensland - establishing a scalable model for long-term environmental investment that’s good for biodiversity, climate, and people, restoring the ecological infrastructure of the region, on which liveability depends.

Why is this initiative needed? With the population in South East Queensland rapidly growing over recent decades, the need for housing, roads and other infrastructure has led to fragmentation of important habitat for many beloved species, including koalas. Land degradation and erosion along creeks and other waterways have also increased the sediment load entering the region’s river system, adding to the risk of flooding. The river ecosystem and the services it provides have been valued at AUD 7 billion annually, but flood damage in the region during 2022 cost more than AUD 7 billion in recovery costs alone.

Droughts and floods will continue to intensify given climate change and, without major investment, erosion, sedimentation and algal blooms will undermine farm and fishery productivity and threaten regional food and drinking water security in the region.

Without long-term investment and conservation, the landscapes of South East Queensland face ecological collapse within a decade, with devastating consequences for communities, wildlife and the environment.

By harnessing the power of multi-stakeholder investment, the ENVestor partnership - founded by Healthy Land & Water and the Landscape Finance Lab - is channeling new sources of finance into large-scale nature-based solutions that rejuvenate the environment while offering tangible benefits to the economy and society.

The programme is focused on building resilience to climate threats, restoring local habitats and ecosystems, improving water quality and protecting threatened and native species.