Submission 177
Governing Biodiversity Loss: A Systems Framework for Translating Management Insights into Policy Action
Oral-02
Presented by: Alberto Di Minin
While public policy scholarship has extensively debated biodiversity governance, management research has engaged only marginally with the policy arena, leaving a rich body of organizational insights largely untapped by policymakers. This paper addresses that gap by asking: What policy implications can be systematically derived from management research on biodiversity, and how can they be translated into actionable guidance for policymakers?
Drawing on systems theory—which emphasizes interdependence, feedback loops, and adaptive capacity—we conceptualize biodiversity governance as a dynamic, multi-level architecture in which coherence and learning emerge from the interaction of diverse actors, institutions, and instruments. To operationalize this lens, we conduct a systematic literature review of 413 business and management studies published between 2011 and 2023 in ABS-ranked journals, following established review protocols and a structured coding process.
The review yields two complementary sets of findings. First, we identify six recurrent policy themes that capture the core governance priorities management research addresses: Governance and Institutions, Inclusion and Equity, Coordination and Cooperation, Knowledge and Learning, Innovation and Technology, and Territorial and Regional Development. Second, we identify six categories of policy tools through which these priorities can be operationalized: adaptive, information-based, participatory, market-based, regulatory, and strategic instruments.
Integrating these findings, we develop the Policy Branch Model for Biodiversity Protection—a layered governance framework that positions Innovation and Technology as a cross-cutting enabler, connecting thematic policy domains through tool-mediated pathways. The model operationalizes the "zooming in / zooming out" logic of systems theory, linking strategic governance functions with operational implementation mechanisms.
This paper makes three contributions: it consolidates scattered policy-relevant insights from management research into an accessible evidence base; it structures the biodiversity policy space around six actionable thematic levers; and it introduces a practical framework for designing coherent, adaptive, and multi-level biodiversity governance interventions.