Watch interviews with the GEF’s government partners, agency representatives, civil society leaders, and in-house specialists on climate change, cities, oceans, biodiversity, illegal wildlife trade, and more, recorded on the sidelines of the 57th GEF Council meetings in December 2019:
Naoko Ishii, CEO and Chairperson, GEF
At the COP25 climate conference in Madrid, the GEF partnered with the Green Climate Fund to showcase the many ways developing country governments are working to raise and realize their climate ambitions. Events held at the joint GCF + GEF Pavilion highlighted examples of where climate change action is bearing fruit, where it can be scaled up, and where more work must be done, especially in the least developed countries. Read more from the front lines of climate action:
As governments, intergovernmental organizations, businesses, and civil society organizations gather in Madrid for the latest UN Climate Summit, we are reminded of the importance of partnerships to meaningfully address the challenges of a warming planet.
In response to growing public demand, policymakers and business leaders are increasingly uniting around shared commitments to reduce planet-warming greenhouse-gas emissions. But while phasing out fossil fuels is necessary, ensuring humanity's long-term survival will also require far-reaching protections for the Earth's natural systems.
The private sector must begin preparing for climate change and the ensuing disruption to operations and services with new approaches
The future success of the private sector may not only depend on how successfully it can mitigate, but also on how it can adapt to climate change. Extreme weather events are already causing havoc to operations, supply chains and commerce all over the world.
Illegal logging, fishing and wildlife trade rob the world of precious natural resources – and ultimately of development benefits and livelihoods. The statistics are grim: an elephant is poached for its tusks about every 30 minutes, an African rhino for its horn every 8 hours, one in five fish is caught illegally, and in certain countries, particularly in Africa and South America, 50% to 90% of timber is harvested and traded illegally. As much as 35% of the value of all illegal trade is estimated to come from rosewood.
In the Argentine Chaco forest, the indigenous and creole peoples of Pampa del Indio work together to produce honey from the "melipona bees," which are native stingless bees (Tetragonisca fiebrigi and Scaptotrigona jujuyensis). In a recent blog, we explain how this zone has become a sanctuary for the production of honey by native species.
Transforming food systems and pursuing healthier diets are key to achieving food security and reducing environmental degradation
Achieving Zero Hunger is not only about feeding people, but also ensuring proper nutrition and nurturing the planet. This year, World Food Day calls for action across sectors to make healthy and sustainable diets affordable and accessible to everyone. At the same time, it calls on everyone to start thinking more carefully about what we eat.
Businesses of all kinds must be prepared to help re-imagine the world’s food system, which is not fit for purpose
Are you reading this with a cup of coffee, a piece of chocolate or maybe even a protein bar with nuts and puffed rice? There is a good chance that the coffee beans, cocoa, nuts or rice were bought or grown, and then processed, by my company, Olam.
We may not be a household name, but we supply manufacturers with the ingredients to make the brands you know.
Shifting to healthier and more sustainable diets will benefit people and the planet – and build prosperity
Three years ago, our city of Oslo was the first to introduce a “climate budget”. The city government budgets its emissions like it budgets its money. Long-term political promises become measurable commitments that are tracked across all departments each year. The mayor, Raymond Johansen, has committed to a 95 per cent emissions reduction by 2030.
