Building a vision is good. Certifying it is structuring - IRICE

Biodiversity as a project lever

Understand, structure, act. IRICE is publishing a series of short articles designed to help decision-makers integrate biodiversity into real estate projects in a clear, measurable and operational way. Aimed at local authorities, project owners, developers and investors, these articles address recurring sticking points, existing tools, and concrete levers for making biodiversity a project asset, not a formal constraint. ➤ All content is written by the IRICE team based on real cases, field feedback and shared experience.

Building a vision is good. Certifying it is structuring.

Mipim 2025, like many other major real estate events, confirmed a major trend: ESG is making its way into strategic discourse, and investors are now being asked to think long-term. Think 2035, imagine sustainable portfolios, integrate societal expectations. But behind all this ambition, one question persists: how can we ensure that these visions are more than just promises? How can we prevent strategy from remaining a declarative exercise, with no tools to objectify impacts? At IRICE, we have a simple conviction: the credibility of an ESG approach depends not on communication, but on measurement. On the ability to certify, structure and demonstrate. In this article, we explore what distinguishes a sincere ambition from a promise without proof. And why, in the face of ecological challenges, independent certification has become a strategic requirement.

Anticipation, ESG, vision 2035: when promises are no longer enough

But behind this ambition, a question persists: how can we ensure that these visions are more than just promises? How can we prevent strategy from remaining a declarative exercise, with no tools to objectivize impact?

ESG: intentions without proof?

The ESG language has taken hold. It has multiplied commitments, declarations of intent and climate strategies. However, in the operational reality of projects, one observation remains: without a common measurement framework, there is neither comparability nor reliable traceability of actions.

This is particularly true when it comes to biodiversity, which is often reduced to aesthetic considerations or a few symbolic plantings. Yet ecological resilience, a site's capacity to foster biodiversity, cannot be decreed. They have to be measured.

Measuring, certifying, prescribing: three requirements to move from strategy to action

At IRICE, we have chosen a clear response to this impasse:

Effinature, environmental certification dedicated to biodiversity, provides a prescriptive, structuring and independent reference framework.
The Biodiversity Performance Score (BPS) translates a project's real contribution to biodiversity into objective, measurable and comparable indicators.

These tools don't just observe. They demand. They provide project owners, investors and local authorities with a shared understanding of their commitments.

Independence as a condition of credibility

Certification means acting as a trusted third party. It's not about providing support or advice: it's about structuring, verifying and guaranteeing traceability. It also means getting away from the logic of self-declaration, internal audits with no contradiction, and unverifiable commitments.

In a context of increasing regulatory and societal expectations, it is this requirement that will make the difference between genuinely ambitious projects and opportunistic approaches.

Conclusion: vision and proof, the two pillars of ESG credibility

Thinking 2035 is a strategic necessity. But it is in the ability to demonstrate the reality of our commitments that lasting trust is built.

IRICE - certifying projects, structuring transitions.