Month: June 2026

Yum! Brands

LOUISVILLE, Ky., June 22, 2026 /3BL/ – Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) published its annual Global Citizenship & Sustainability Report, spotlighting how the company is integrating sustainability into its growth strategy to manage long-term risk, improve operational resilience and support franchisee success.

“In 2025, we made continued progress on our global citizenship and sustainability priorities while navigating meaningful change, both in our business and in the external environment,” said Yum! Brands CEO Chris Turner. “Across markets, evolving regulations and disclosure expectations are reshaping how companies approach issues like packaging and responsible sourcing. At the same time, our teams remain focused on building capabilities and systems that support our franchisees and strengthen our brands for the long term.”

2025 was a year of progress across the company’s People, Food and Planet pillars as it introduced its new growth plan. Sustainability efforts at Yum! support the company’s business strategy by building and managing long-term risks. Highlights from the report include:

• Invested over $74 million to fight hunger worldwide, reaching 6.5 million people and delivering 46.8 million meal equivalents through food, product and cash donations
• Strengthened global food safety systems through Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)-recognized certifications, with approximately 93% of required suppliers being GFSI-certified
• Established Raised Responsibly framework, a unified, science-based approach focused on improving how chickens are raised through measurable, outcome-based indicators that builds on a strong foundation of KFC’s supply chain efforts including monitoring the welfare of more than 13 billion chickens since 2018
• Decreased Scope 1 & 2 emissions 18% from 2019 baseline while improving corporate-owned restaurant emissions intensity by 40% since 2019
• Continued investments in climate-focused supply chain pilots across beef, dairy, soy and chicken including KFC France chicken farm emissions reduction pilots, a new KFC and Conservation International project that supports more sustainable production of palm oil and soy, and the Taco Bell U.S. beef partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
• Elevated packaging with focus on circularity, including the Pizza Hut U.S. recyclable wing bowl, Habit’s shift from select plastic packaging to fiber-based formats and the company’s overall strategic management of compliance efforts such as extended producer responsibility
• Assessed corporate risks related to sustainability through multiple reports including an initial Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures Report and an updated Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures Report

“We continue to integrate citizenship and sustainability at Yum! and within our brands, driving business resilience through efforts like strategic supply chain partnerships and operating more efficient restaurants,” said Jon Hixson, Yum! Brands Chief Sustainability Officer & Vice President, Government Affairs. “I’m proud of the work we’ve done to drive value creation and support our franchisees in growing our iconic restaurant brands globally.”

For further details, view the Yum! Brands’ 2025 Global Citizenship & Sustainability Report at www.yum.com/impact.

About Yum! Brands, Inc.

Yum! Brands, Inc., and its subsidiaries franchise or operate more than 63,000 restaurants across over 155 countries and territories under its iconic brands — KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Habit Burger & Grill. KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut are global leaders in the chicken, Mexican-inspired food and pizza categories, respectively. Habit Burger & Grill is a fast-casual concept known for made-to-order chargrilled burgers, sandwiches and more.

Fueled by Yum!’s Recipe for Good Growth, KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut led Entrepreneur’s 2026 Franchise 500 rankings and its Top Global Franchises 2025 list. In 2026, Yum!’s unrivaled culture and talent led it to be named one of TIME magazine’s list of Best Companies for Future Leaders for the third consecutive year.

Originally published on GoDaddy Resource Library

Somewhere in the world, right now, someone is naming an idea.

It might be a bakery in Lisbon. An AI startup in San Francisco. A small business owner in Mumbai turning a weekend side hustle into something bigger. Before any of it becomes real, one thing has to happen first: they need a domain name.

That’s where we come in.

For more than 25 years, GoDaddy has had the pleasure of being there for that moment. Today, over 20 million customers in more than 100 countries trust us to help them claim their corner of the internet – which means that when we look at our proprietary data, we’re not just looking at GoDaddy. We’re looking at a meaningful slice of the open web itself.

So once a year, we step back and ask a simple question: what is the world actually building?

In this blog post, we’ll cover the full answer. It’s a story about domain names, geography, language, ambition, and taste. About the enduring power of .com, the breakout of .ai, and a handful of shifts we didn’t see coming. And more than anything, it’s a thank-you — genuinely — to every single person who decided 2025 was their year to start something new, and trusted GoDaddy to help them register a domain and bring it to life.

.com is still the anchor. But the story is getting richer.

Let’s start with the number that barely moved and the one that shifted the most.

In 2025, .com accounted for 50.25% of every domain registered on GoDaddy. More than the next fourteen extensions combined. Four decades in, three letters still carry remarkable trust.

Look across our major markets, though, and the picture gets more textured:

• United States – 64.98% .com
• Canada – 46.16%
• India – 45.96%
• United Kingdom – 36.68%
• China – 20.41%

In the U.S., customers who register a domain still reach for .com almost by reflex. In other markets, customers are thoughtfully building a mix, blending .com with local or specialty extensions that reflect where they are and what they do.

Five countries, most of our registrations

On GoDaddy, the domain market is more concentrated than you might expect. In 2025, nearly 70% of the new domains registered with us came from just five countries, with the U.S. leading at 41.77% of all GoDaddy registrations.

Rank	Country	Share of GoDaddy 2025 registrations
1	United States	41.77%
2	India	9.54%
3	China	8.24%
4	United Kingdom	6.40%
5	Canada	3.73%

A closer look at the U.S.

Since the United States drives over 40% of global registrations, it’s worth taking a closer look at what American business owners are actually choosing.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the top five domain extensions registered in the United States:

• .com: 64.98%
• .org: 4.87%
• .net: 4.57%
• .ai: 1.99%
• .us: 1.13%

Two things stand out.

First, .com’s grip on the U.S. is unmatched. Nearly two out of every three American customers who register a domain on GoDaddy still reach for .com.

Second, .ai has cracked the top five. An extension that wasn’t on anyone’s radar three years ago now outranks .us in the U.S.

Outside the U.S., local extensions shine

If you’re building a business beyond American borders, here’s a pattern worth planning around: one .com is often not the full picture.

In the UK, .co.uk nearly matches .com among GoDaddy customers at 35.89%. Add .uk, and more than four in ten UK registrations are local extensions.

In India, .in alone accounts for 24.91% of GoDaddy registrations. Include .co.in, and close to one in three Indian domains on GoDaddy is a local ccTLD.

In Canada, .ca sits at 34.78% of Canadian registrations, about a third of the market. The takeaway is practical. Customers in these markets often want to see a local extension, and search engines reward the signal. If you’re expanding internationally, pairing your .com with a local ccTLD when you buy a domain is one of the simplest ways to build trust with local audiences.

The breakout story of 2025: .ai

Every year has an extension that defines it. In our 2025 data, that extension was .ai.

On GoDaddy, .ai registrations grew 62.6% year-over-year. In our rankings, it climbed from #18 to #14 in a single year.

And the growth wasn’t powered by a handful of large buyers. Total registrations and daily averages grew at nearly identical rates, which tells us this demand came from thousands of individual founders and teams, each making the same choice independently.

The U.S. led the way. More than 60% of .ai domains registered on GoDaddy came from American customers. Nearly 2% of every U.S. domain registered on GoDaddy in 2025 was a .ai, a meaningful share for an extension that most people didn’t really use three years ago. The signal is simple: if you’re building something in AI, .ai proves credibility. You can find your .ai domain on GoDaddy in seconds.

Ecommerce has its own lane

A few years ago, telling someone your domain ended in .shop might have sounded experimental. Not in 2025.

In 2025, .shop became the #4 extension on GoDaddy globally, at 2.82% of all registrations. .store landed at #11 with 1.93%. Together, they represent millions of merchants who decided the fastest way to tell a customer what they do is to put it right there in the URL. If you’re starting an online business and the .com you want is already taken, a .shop or .store isn’t a compromise. It’s a clear, confident signal of what you sell.

The internet has a favorite day

Wednesday is the busiest day for domain registrations on GoDaddy.

In 2025, 16.8% of every U.S. domain registration on GoDaddy happened on a Wednesday. Weekends run about 35% below the weekday average. The calendar has its own pattern too: February surges as entrepreneurs act on New Year plans, and mid-November picks up as businesses gear up for Q4.

So if you’re sitting on a name you love, don’t leave it for Saturday. Wednesday mornings are when the internet moves fastest, and the name you want today is likely the name someone else is searching for right now.

What 2025 is telling us about 2026

Here’s what the cumulative stats tell us about domain trends in 2026:

• .com is still the anchor. Trusted, instinctive, and still more than half of GoDaddy registrations.
• Local extensions matter more than ever. If you sell beyond the U.S., pairing your .com with a ccTLD is often a smart move.
• .ai has graduated. No longer a tech flex. If you’re building in AI, you need a .ai domain.
• Ecommerce extensions are credible. .shop and .store have earned their place.
• Timing is an advantage. The best moment to find a domain name and lock it in is midweek, before demand peaks.

The domain landscape heading into 2026 is more diverse, more global, and more thoughtful than it has ever been. That’s the good news for anyone starting something new: there have never been more ways to plant your flag online.

The hardest part is just deciding to begin.

Your name is out there

Much of the internet has been built by people willing to name something new.

Somewhere in our 2025 proprietary data is a founder who registered a domain on an ordinary Wednesday in February and changed the trajectory of their life. In 2026, that could be you.

If you have an idea, a business, or a brand still waiting on a name, this is the moment. Find and register your domain on GoDaddy in minutes, and join the 20+ million customers already building what’s next.

GoDaddy customers registered millions of domains in 2025. The only one that matters for you is the one you haven’t registered yet.

Originally published on GoDaddy Resource Library

Somewhere in the world, right now, someone is naming an idea.

It might be a bakery in Lisbon. An AI startup in San Francisco. A small business owner in Mumbai turning a weekend side hustle into something bigger. Before any of it becomes real, one thing has to happen first: they need a domain name.

That’s where we come in.

For more than 25 years, GoDaddy has had the pleasure of being there for that moment. Today, over 20 million customers in more than 100 countries trust us to help them claim their corner of the internet – which means that when we look at our proprietary data, we’re not just looking at GoDaddy. We’re looking at a meaningful slice of the open web itself.

So once a year, we step back and ask a simple question: what is the world actually building?

In this blog post, we’ll cover the full answer. It’s a story about domain names, geography, language, ambition, and taste. About the enduring power of .com, the breakout of .ai, and a handful of shifts we didn’t see coming. And more than anything, it’s a thank-you — genuinely — to every single person who decided 2025 was their year to start something new, and trusted GoDaddy to help them register a domain and bring it to life.

.com is still the anchor. But the story is getting richer.

Let’s start with the number that barely moved and the one that shifted the most.

In 2025, .com accounted for 50.25% of every domain registered on GoDaddy. More than the next fourteen extensions combined. Four decades in, three letters still carry remarkable trust.

Look across our major markets, though, and the picture gets more textured:

• United States – 64.98% .com
• Canada – 46.16%
• India – 45.96%
• United Kingdom – 36.68%
• China – 20.41%

In the U.S., customers who register a domain still reach for .com almost by reflex. In other markets, customers are thoughtfully building a mix, blending .com with local or specialty extensions that reflect where they are and what they do.

Five countries, most of our registrations

On GoDaddy, the domain market is more concentrated than you might expect. In 2025, nearly 70% of the new domains registered with us came from just five countries, with the U.S. leading at 41.77% of all GoDaddy registrations.

Rank	Country	Share of GoDaddy 2025 registrations
1	United States	41.77%
2	India	9.54%
3	China	8.24%
4	United Kingdom	6.40%
5	Canada	3.73%

A closer look at the U.S.

Since the United States drives over 40% of global registrations, it’s worth taking a closer look at what American business owners are actually choosing.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the top five domain extensions registered in the United States:

• .com: 64.98%
• .org: 4.87%
• .net: 4.57%
• .ai: 1.99%
• .us: 1.13%

Two things stand out.

First, .com’s grip on the U.S. is unmatched. Nearly two out of every three American customers who register a domain on GoDaddy still reach for .com.

Second, .ai has cracked the top five. An extension that wasn’t on anyone’s radar three years ago now outranks .us in the U.S.

Outside the U.S., local extensions shine

If you’re building a business beyond American borders, here’s a pattern worth planning around: one .com is often not the full picture.

In the UK, .co.uk nearly matches .com among GoDaddy customers at 35.89%. Add .uk, and more than four in ten UK registrations are local extensions.

In India, .in alone accounts for 24.91% of GoDaddy registrations. Include .co.in, and close to one in three Indian domains on GoDaddy is a local ccTLD.

In Canada, .ca sits at 34.78% of Canadian registrations, about a third of the market. The takeaway is practical. Customers in these markets often want to see a local extension, and search engines reward the signal. If you’re expanding internationally, pairing your .com with a local ccTLD when you buy a domain is one of the simplest ways to build trust with local audiences.

The breakout story of 2025: .ai

Every year has an extension that defines it. In our 2025 data, that extension was .ai.

On GoDaddy, .ai registrations grew 62.6% year-over-year. In our rankings, it climbed from #18 to #14 in a single year.

And the growth wasn’t powered by a handful of large buyers. Total registrations and daily averages grew at nearly identical rates, which tells us this demand came from thousands of individual founders and teams, each making the same choice independently.

The U.S. led the way. More than 60% of .ai domains registered on GoDaddy came from American customers. Nearly 2% of every U.S. domain registered on GoDaddy in 2025 was a .ai, a meaningful share for an extension that most people didn’t really use three years ago. The signal is simple: if you’re building something in AI, .ai proves credibility. You can find your .ai domain on GoDaddy in seconds.

Ecommerce has its own lane

A few years ago, telling someone your domain ended in .shop might have sounded experimental. Not in 2025.

In 2025, .shop became the #4 extension on GoDaddy globally, at 2.82% of all registrations. .store landed at #11 with 1.93%. Together, they represent millions of merchants who decided the fastest way to tell a customer what they do is to put it right there in the URL. If you’re starting an online business and the .com you want is already taken, a .shop or .store isn’t a compromise. It’s a clear, confident signal of what you sell.

The internet has a favorite day

Wednesday is the busiest day for domain registrations on GoDaddy.

In 2025, 16.8% of every U.S. domain registration on GoDaddy happened on a Wednesday. Weekends run about 35% below the weekday average. The calendar has its own pattern too: February surges as entrepreneurs act on New Year plans, and mid-November picks up as businesses gear up for Q4.

So if you’re sitting on a name you love, don’t leave it for Saturday. Wednesday mornings are when the internet moves fastest, and the name you want today is likely the name someone else is searching for right now.

What 2025 is telling us about 2026

Here’s what the cumulative stats tell us about domain trends in 2026:

• .com is still the anchor. Trusted, instinctive, and still more than half of GoDaddy registrations.
• Local extensions matter more than ever. If you sell beyond the U.S., pairing your .com with a ccTLD is often a smart move.
• .ai has graduated. No longer a tech flex. If you’re building in AI, you need a .ai domain.
• Ecommerce extensions are credible. .shop and .store have earned their place.
• Timing is an advantage. The best moment to find a domain name and lock it in is midweek, before demand peaks.

The domain landscape heading into 2026 is more diverse, more global, and more thoughtful than it has ever been. That’s the good news for anyone starting something new: there have never been more ways to plant your flag online.

The hardest part is just deciding to begin.

Your name is out there

Much of the internet has been built by people willing to name something new.

Somewhere in our 2025 proprietary data is a founder who registered a domain on an ordinary Wednesday in February and changed the trajectory of their life. In 2026, that could be you.

If you have an idea, a business, or a brand still waiting on a name, this is the moment. Find and register your domain on GoDaddy in minutes, and join the 20+ million customers already building what’s next.

GoDaddy customers registered millions of domains in 2025. The only one that matters for you is the one you haven’t registered yet.

Three points to remember

1. Fuel logistics remain a critical vulnerability in modern operations because continuous resupply slows maneuver, extends supply lines, and increases risk to personnel.
2. Leidos’ ongoing participation in the ExCURSion program combines the strengths of fuel and batteries by storing energy as regenerable carbon-based fuel in a closed, rechargeable system.
3. This regenerative approach to expeditionary energy aims to enable on-demand fuel production, reducing convoy requirements while increasing operational flexibility and mission endurance.

The risk of fuel in modern operations

Moving fuel remains one of the most persistent risks in modern military operations. It slows maneuvers, extends vulnerable supply lines, and exposes personnel to unnecessary danger.

Leidos is working with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to address that challenge at its root. Energy resilience is not just a technical hurdle, it is a strategic priority as missions demand more secure, adaptable, and sustainable power.

The limits of today’s power options

Today, portable energy involves a fundamental tradeoff. Batteries are efficient, quiet, and adaptable, with the ability to recharge from many different energy inputs. However, their relatively low energy density limits runtime and can drive up size and weight.

Fuels, by contrast, pack far more energy into a smaller footprint, offering strong size, weight, and power performance. But they depend on ongoing resupply, imposing a logistical burden that is costly, constraining, and potentially hazardous.

A new model: the ExCURSion program 

Through DARPA’s Expeditionary Carbon Utilization for Energy Resilience and Stabilization (ExCURSion) program, Leidos is helping develop a fundamentally different approach to expeditionary power.

ExCURSion aims to eliminate the tradeoff between batteries and fuel by creating a closed, rechargeable system designed to store energy as carbon-based fuel. By integrating carbon combustion, capture, and regeneration into a single platform, ExCURSion systems are intended to combine attributes of fuel-based endurance with the flexibility of a rechargeable battery, with the goal of producing fuel on demand from inputs such as carbon dioxide, water, and electricity.

Advancing the technology: 1,000 recharges

The Leidos approach to ExCURSion depends on two core innovations: 1) high-rate carbonate reduction processes performed in carefully engineered electrolytes and 2) advanced materials capable of shuttling critical chemical species between the electrodes in addition to providing chemical and physical stability to the electrochemical cells themselves.

Together, these technologies are designed to enable a system that can regenerate its own fuel, operate for extended periods, and adapt to diverse energy inputs. In partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Leidos has demonstrated a working cell prototype that recharged rapidly and cycled up to 1,000 times in testing, representing progress toward potential operational use.

Impact at the tactical edge

“This is about fundamentally changing how energy is delivered and sustained in contested environments,” said John Dresios, division manager of Chemistry/Biology/Materials Sciences at Leidos. “By combining the strengths of batteries and fuel into a single, regenerative system, we can reduce logistical risk, increase operational flexibility, and give warfighters more control over their energy supply wherever they operate.”

The intended operational benefits include the potential for fewer fuel convoys, reduced exposure to threats, and improved mission endurance. The approach also helps reduce dependence on certain critical minerals and traditional fossil fuels, addressing both logistical and environmental considerations.

Scaling for the future

ExCURSion reflects a broader effort by Leidos to invest in resilient, scalable mission systems, from energy at the tactical edge to secure infrastructure across the mission environment. Recent strategic actions, including the acquisition of ENTRUST, are intended to expand our ability to deliver integrated capabilities aligned with evolving national needs.

Approved for Public Release, Distribution Unlimited.

This material is based upon work supported by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) under Contract No. HR001125C0012. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

Three points to remember

1. Fuel logistics remain a critical vulnerability in modern operations because continuous resupply slows maneuver, extends supply lines, and increases risk to personnel.
2. Leidos’ ongoing participation in the ExCURSion program combines the strengths of fuel and batteries by storing energy as regenerable carbon-based fuel in a closed, rechargeable system.
3. This regenerative approach to expeditionary energy aims to enable on-demand fuel production, reducing convoy requirements while increasing operational flexibility and mission endurance.

The risk of fuel in modern operations

Moving fuel remains one of the most persistent risks in modern military operations. It slows maneuvers, extends vulnerable supply lines, and exposes personnel to unnecessary danger.

Leidos is working with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to address that challenge at its root. Energy resilience is not just a technical hurdle, it is a strategic priority as missions demand more secure, adaptable, and sustainable power.

The limits of today’s power options

Today, portable energy involves a fundamental tradeoff. Batteries are efficient, quiet, and adaptable, with the ability to recharge from many different energy inputs. However, their relatively low energy density limits runtime and can drive up size and weight.

Fuels, by contrast, pack far more energy into a smaller footprint, offering strong size, weight, and power performance. But they depend on ongoing resupply, imposing a logistical burden that is costly, constraining, and potentially hazardous.

A new model: the ExCURSion program 

Through DARPA’s Expeditionary Carbon Utilization for Energy Resilience and Stabilization (ExCURSion) program, Leidos is helping develop a fundamentally different approach to expeditionary power.

ExCURSion aims to eliminate the tradeoff between batteries and fuel by creating a closed, rechargeable system designed to store energy as carbon-based fuel. By integrating carbon combustion, capture, and regeneration into a single platform, ExCURSion systems are intended to combine attributes of fuel-based endurance with the flexibility of a rechargeable battery, with the goal of producing fuel on demand from inputs such as carbon dioxide, water, and electricity.

Advancing the technology: 1,000 recharges

The Leidos approach to ExCURSion depends on two core innovations: 1) high-rate carbonate reduction processes performed in carefully engineered electrolytes and 2) advanced materials capable of shuttling critical chemical species between the electrodes in addition to providing chemical and physical stability to the electrochemical cells themselves.

Together, these technologies are designed to enable a system that can regenerate its own fuel, operate for extended periods, and adapt to diverse energy inputs. In partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Leidos has demonstrated a working cell prototype that recharged rapidly and cycled up to 1,000 times in testing, representing progress toward potential operational use.

Impact at the tactical edge

“This is about fundamentally changing how energy is delivered and sustained in contested environments,” said John Dresios, division manager of Chemistry/Biology/Materials Sciences at Leidos. “By combining the strengths of batteries and fuel into a single, regenerative system, we can reduce logistical risk, increase operational flexibility, and give warfighters more control over their energy supply wherever they operate.”

The intended operational benefits include the potential for fewer fuel convoys, reduced exposure to threats, and improved mission endurance. The approach also helps reduce dependence on certain critical minerals and traditional fossil fuels, addressing both logistical and environmental considerations.

Scaling for the future

ExCURSion reflects a broader effort by Leidos to invest in resilient, scalable mission systems, from energy at the tactical edge to secure infrastructure across the mission environment. Recent strategic actions, including the acquisition of ENTRUST, are intended to expand our ability to deliver integrated capabilities aligned with evolving national needs.

Approved for Public Release, Distribution Unlimited.

This material is based upon work supported by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) under Contract No. HR001125C0012. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

ARLINGTON, Va., June 22, 2026 /3BL/ – As climate change and biodiversity loss intensify, protecting and restoring nature is increasingly recognized as essential for environmental and economic resilience. A convergence of structural, market, and policy forces is bringing nature-related risks and opportunities into sharper focus for the private sector, driving increased interest in investing in nature-based solutions.

But as attention and ambition grow, a key question remains: is private capital translating that momentum into real investment on the ground, and at the scale needed?

Gaining Ground: State of Private Investment in Nature, 2026, a new report from Forest Trends and The Nature Conservancy, offers the most comprehensive answer to date.

Building on a benchmark series first published in 2014, the analysis draws on more than a decade of global data tracking private capital flows to nature. Based on 1,731 transactions from 2016–2025 and survey data from 70 institutions representing $207 trillion in AUM, the report combines survey outreach, desk research, and public data sources.

The findings point to a field that has expanded significantly in both scale and complexity, shaped by growing recognition of nature-related risks and opportunities, evolving financial models, shifting macroeconomic conditions and strengthening policy signals.

Key findings include:

• Private investment in nature has grown significantly, with more than $60 billion deployed over the past decade. Annual flows have increased fivefold, from $2.8 billion in 2016 to over $14 billion in 2025, and over $180 billion in private capital is targeted for the years ahead, underscoring accelerating momentum.
• More than half of flows were to working landscapes like sustainable agriculture and forestry, where nature is the critical infrastructure underpinning food production, forest products, water security, and responsible commodity supply chains.
• Private investment is heavily concentrated in the Americas, with Latin America alone attracting over $15 billion over the last decade, while regions like Africa and Asia remain significantly underfunded despite their critical ecological importance. The gap reflects the importance of policy enablers and market conditions for investment readiness.
• Institutional, return-first investors increasingly view nature investments as financially competitive, with 88% of surveyed investors reporting a positive relationship between financial returns and impact. A growing trend toward financial risk-reducing approaches, including the use of public and philanthropic funding to bring in private capital —engaged by two in three respondents—and integrated models that combine multiple revenue streams, is helping attract these types of investors to the space.

Private capital committed to nature investments, 2009–2025

^{Source: Forest Trends’ Ecosystem Marketplace and The Nature Conservancy, Gaining Ground: State of Private Investment in Nature 2026}

Gaining Ground analyzes an emerging investment theme that is growing, innovating, and attracting new large-scale funding, but is still constrained by the systems needed to deploy that capital efficiently.

Unlocking the next phase will depend on stronger enabling conditions that reduce risk and help capital flow more effectively. This is already taking shape through new standards and frameworks that help investors measure nature-positive outcomes, including the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures. Government-backed markets, regulations, and disclosure requirements are also creating demand, from biodiversity credits to deforestation-free supply chains. At the same time, models such as water funds are demonstrating how investments in natural infrastructure can generate reliable revenue.

Overall, the analysis points to these approaches as a clear path for translating growing momentum into measurable impact capable of supporting resilient ecosystems and the communities and economies that depend on them.

“This report shows that institutional investors are investing in nature,” said Jennifer Morris, CEO of The Nature Conservancy. “Not surprisingly, investors are approaching the opportunity through sectors and markets they understand, which is exactly how a space like this develops. We also see new structures and approaches emerging to meet the expectations of investors—and translate into real investment activity. Increasing scale will require more durable policy signals and stronger demand for products like high-quality verified carbon and sustainably produced commodities.”

“The scale of capital reflected in these findings is significant,” said Michael Jenkins, CEO of Forest Trends. “But just as important is the type of investors now entering the space. We’re seeing a stronger presence of institutional capital who see that nature impact and financial performance can go hand-in-hand. Ten years ago, this was still a fairly niche category. Today, there’s a much broader set of nature-based activities that are viewed as viable and able to attract sustained capital. Tomorrow, the trajectory is toward nature firmly in the mainstream of finance, reflecting its centrality to a resilient global economy.”

Download the full report, Gaining Ground; State of Private Investment in Nature, 2026.

For media inquiries, contact: Rachel Winters, Deputy Director, Global Media, The Nature Conservancy, Email: rwinters@tnc.org

 

The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more sustainable. The Nature Conservancy is working to make a lasting difference around the world in 81 countries and territories (40 by direct conservation impact and 41 through partners) through a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners.

Forest Trends is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1999. Forest Trends works to conserve forests and other ecosystems through the creation and wide adoption of a broad range of environmental finance, markets, and other payment and incentive mechanisms. Forest Trends does so by 1) providing transparent information on ecosystem values, finance, and markets through knowledge acquisition, analysis, and dissemination; 2) convening diverse coalitions, partners, and communities of practice to promote environmental values and advance development of new markets and payment mechanisms; and 3) demonstrating successful tools, standards, and models of innovative finance for conservation.

ARLINGTON, Va., June 22, 2026 /3BL/ – As climate change and biodiversity loss intensify, protecting and restoring nature is increasingly recognized as essential for environmental and economic resilience. A convergence of structural, market, and policy forces is bringing nature-related risks and opportunities into sharper focus for the private sector, driving increased interest in investing in nature-based solutions.

But as attention and ambition grow, a key question remains: is private capital translating that momentum into real investment on the ground, and at the scale needed?

Gaining Ground: State of Private Investment in Nature, 2026, a new report from Forest Trends and The Nature Conservancy, offers the most comprehensive answer to date.

Building on a benchmark series first published in 2014, the analysis draws on more than a decade of global data tracking private capital flows to nature. Based on 1,731 transactions from 2016–2025 and survey data from 70 institutions representing $207 trillion in AUM, the report combines survey outreach, desk research, and public data sources.

The findings point to a field that has expanded significantly in both scale and complexity, shaped by growing recognition of nature-related risks and opportunities, evolving financial models, shifting macroeconomic conditions and strengthening policy signals.

Key findings include:

• Private investment in nature has grown significantly, with more than $60 billion deployed over the past decade. Annual flows have increased fivefold, from $2.8 billion in 2016 to over $14 billion in 2025, and over $180 billion in private capital is targeted for the years ahead, underscoring accelerating momentum.
• More than half of flows were to working landscapes like sustainable agriculture and forestry, where nature is the critical infrastructure underpinning food production, forest products, water security, and responsible commodity supply chains.
• Private investment is heavily concentrated in the Americas, with Latin America alone attracting over $15 billion over the last decade, while regions like Africa and Asia remain significantly underfunded despite their critical ecological importance. The gap reflects the importance of policy enablers and market conditions for investment readiness.
• Institutional, return-first investors increasingly view nature investments as financially competitive, with 88% of surveyed investors reporting a positive relationship between financial returns and impact. A growing trend toward financial risk-reducing approaches, including the use of public and philanthropic funding to bring in private capital —engaged by two in three respondents—and integrated models that combine multiple revenue streams, is helping attract these types of investors to the space.

Private capital committed to nature investments, 2009–2025

^{Source: Forest Trends’ Ecosystem Marketplace and The Nature Conservancy, Gaining Ground: State of Private Investment in Nature 2026}

Gaining Ground analyzes an emerging investment theme that is growing, innovating, and attracting new large-scale funding, but is still constrained by the systems needed to deploy that capital efficiently.

Unlocking the next phase will depend on stronger enabling conditions that reduce risk and help capital flow more effectively. This is already taking shape through new standards and frameworks that help investors measure nature-positive outcomes, including the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures. Government-backed markets, regulations, and disclosure requirements are also creating demand, from biodiversity credits to deforestation-free supply chains. At the same time, models such as water funds are demonstrating how investments in natural infrastructure can generate reliable revenue.

Overall, the analysis points to these approaches as a clear path for translating growing momentum into measurable impact capable of supporting resilient ecosystems and the communities and economies that depend on them.

“This report shows that institutional investors are investing in nature,” said Jennifer Morris, CEO of The Nature Conservancy. “Not surprisingly, investors are approaching the opportunity through sectors and markets they understand, which is exactly how a space like this develops. We also see new structures and approaches emerging to meet the expectations of investors—and translate into real investment activity. Increasing scale will require more durable policy signals and stronger demand for products like high-quality verified carbon and sustainably produced commodities.”

“The scale of capital reflected in these findings is significant,” said Michael Jenkins, CEO of Forest Trends. “But just as important is the type of investors now entering the space. We’re seeing a stronger presence of institutional capital who see that nature impact and financial performance can go hand-in-hand. Ten years ago, this was still a fairly niche category. Today, there’s a much broader set of nature-based activities that are viewed as viable and able to attract sustained capital. Tomorrow, the trajectory is toward nature firmly in the mainstream of finance, reflecting its centrality to a resilient global economy.”

Download the full report, Gaining Ground; State of Private Investment in Nature, 2026.

For media inquiries, contact: Rachel Winters, Deputy Director, Global Media, The Nature Conservancy, Email: rwinters@tnc.org

 

The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more sustainable. The Nature Conservancy is working to make a lasting difference around the world in 81 countries and territories (40 by direct conservation impact and 41 through partners) through a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners.

Forest Trends is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1999. Forest Trends works to conserve forests and other ecosystems through the creation and wide adoption of a broad range of environmental finance, markets, and other payment and incentive mechanisms. Forest Trends does so by 1) providing transparent information on ecosystem values, finance, and markets through knowledge acquisition, analysis, and dissemination; 2) convening diverse coalitions, partners, and communities of practice to promote environmental values and advance development of new markets and payment mechanisms; and 3) demonstrating successful tools, standards, and models of innovative finance for conservation.

Following its mission to reimagine infrastructure to be safer, cleaner, and more productive, The Ray has delivered a comprehensive formal response to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Request for Information (RFI) regarding a national Transportation Digital Infrastructure (TDI) strategy.

The strategic submission was directed to the USDOT Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (OST-R) leadership—including Assistant Secretary Seval Oz, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Michael Halem, and Deputy Assistant Secretary Lee White. Led by Executive Director, Allie Kelly, The Ray’s response establishes a clear paradigm shift toward a collaborative innovation model. The Ray partners with all levels of government to drive innovation in energy and mobility, improving capacity, production, and longevity to move faster than the status quo.

“By transitioning from a passive land management model to digital, proactive stewardship models, transportation agencies can move from understanding what they could build to what they should build to achieve the highest and best use of public assets,” stated Allie Kelly.

With this submission, The Ray isn’t just suggesting new tools; they are calling for a new mindset, moving USDOT and public agencies from a reactive asset-management culture to a proactive, data-driven risk-prevention culture.

Read the full story here.

As part of Fashion Redressed II, presented by Global Fashion Agenda and produced by BBC StoryWorks Commercial Productions, Gildan Activewear Inc. (“Gildan” or the “Company”) displays how it weaves innovation and sustainability into its supply chain, particularly by following the dyeing stage of a Comfort Colors^® T-shirt. In doing so, the Company reiterates its commitment to Making Apparel Better^® for the environment and people. Presented by Global Fashion Agenda and produced by BBC StoryWorks Commercial Productions, Fashion Redressed II spotlights the people and companies leading innovation and change in the global apparel and fashion industry as it grapples with the challenge of addressing its environmental and social impact.

“We are pleased to take part in this episode of Fashion Redressed II, showcasing how sustainability is core to Gildan’s very business model and is embedded in our manufacturing processes,” says Chuck Ward, Executive Vice-President, Chief Commercial Officer at Gildan. “With this opportunity, Gildan joins the global conversation of how the fashion industry can explore pathways and initiate solutions to reduce its impact on the environment.”

The segment takes a deeper dive into Gildan’s manufacturing facility in Honduras, walking viewers through the various stages of its operations including dyeing and sewing, and unveiling its innovation and sustainability initiatives. Most notably, audiences are privy to the Biotop, a lagoon system that treats wastewater using natural bacteria and helps return restored water back to the environment.

The segment also spotlights Comfort Colors’^® proprietary dyeing process, Pigment Pure™, responsible for producing the brand’s beloved nature-inspired palette. Pigment Pure™, developed through years of research and process optimization, uses less energy, water, and salt¹, and is an innovative dyeing method developed to produce the brand’s iconic vintage colours. Accompanying viewers in this journey is Israel Salinas, Senior Vice-President of Global Supply Chain.

“Throughout my 20+ years at Gildan, the one question always driving us is ‘how can we operate more responsibly and efficiently with our resources?’,” says Israel. “I am honoured to have had the opportunity to show viewers how years of research and optimization have allowed us to improve our processes, and how we are committed to forging ahead on this continuous path of development.”

View the full promoted feature on Gildan’s YouTube channel here.

 

1. Compared to conventional reactive dyeing

LONDON, June 22, 2026 /3BL/ – DP World is expanding its pioneering Low Carbon Truck Programme (LCTP) in the UK with a new initiative that offers its members the opportunity to trial electric HGVs through a dedicated rental initiative at Southampton port.

The second phase of DP World’s Low Carbon Truck Programme, known as the Electric Vehicle Introduction and Transition Accelerator (EVITA) trial, builds on a successful pilot launched in January in partnership with the University of Cambridge’s Centre for Sustainable Road Freight and Project JOLT. Beginning in July and running until 2029, the programme enables hauliers to use electric HGVs with costs aligned to diesel vehicles, for a period of 12-weeks in real-world operating conditions.

There are now more than 1,500 trucks registered to the Low Carbon Truck Programme, supporting more than 60 UK hauliers. The EVITA trial will help members understand how electric HGVs perform across their own routes and supply chains in comparison to traditional diesel trucks.

Several hauliers have already received their new electric HGVs as part of the latest initiative, including Williams Shipping and ATL Haulage. The vehicles are fitted with tracking systems that allow participating customers to analyse their performance, efficiency and environmental impact.

Initially, electric HGVs from Mercedes-Benz, Volvo and MAN will be available, increasing to four vehicles from October. Delivered in partnership with Hireco, the programme is expected to provide up to 100 trial opportunities for hauliers over its three-year duration.

John Trenchard, Vice President, Sustainable Supply Chains – Europe, at DP World, said: “More than 80% of UK freight is transported by road, so decarbonisation initiatives that empower hauliers to take action on their own supply chains are key for the UK energy transition. With the EVITA trial, DP World is demonstrating its commitment to enabling the industry to adopt more sustainable methods of moving goods through a practical and commercially attractive pathway.

“DP World see its future growth in the net zero economy, so over the next three years, we’re aiming to provide around 100 trial opportunities for hauliers on the programme, giving them early access to the real-world experiences of managing their operations with electric trucks.”

Drew Roberts, Managing Director, ATL Haulage, said: “A month in with the MAN electric HGV and we’re doing exactly what EVITA was designed for – testing, learning and adapting. Integrating the new vehicle into our daily container moves from DP World Southampton has highlighted the operational differences between EV and ICE management in ways you can only understand by doing it. Driver feedback has been positive so far and the questions the trial is raising are the right ones. We came into this to de-risk the unknown and that’s exactly what’s happening.”

The first phase of the EVITA trial was launched in January, providing select hauliers with four electric HGVs at cost-parity to diesel trucks. The participating hauliers were given access to DP World’s twin 360kWh electric HGV charging stations at the newly opened driver welfare facility at Southampton, allowing the vehicles to be charged simultaneously. Drivers also receive a free cup of coffee with each vehicle recharge at the Southampton facility.

 

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