With more than 100 partners, the Global Landscapes Forum is the most important event at the nexus of land use, science, politics, business and civil society. These partners have been incredibly active in blogging about the event and raising awareness on the crucial role landscapes have to play in tackling climate change and achieving sustainable development. Below we have compiled a first selection of articles, and we encourage all partners to continue sending us their stories as they are published.
Australia leads push for Global Rainforest Recovery Plan – Australia’s environment ministry
At the Global Landscapes Forum in Paris, Australia is proud to announce that we are leading a new international push to create a Global Rainforest Recovery Plan – building on the success of the Asia-Pacific Rainforest Recovery Plan.
NEPAD Launches Initiative for the Resilience and Restoration of African Landscapes – TerrAfrica – World Bank
The African Union New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) launched today the African Resilient Landscapes Initiative (ARLI). This initiative will be implemented through forest and ecosystem restoration, biodiversity conservation, climate smart agriculture, and rangeland management. The World Bank Group and World Resources Institute will, as main partners, support the mobilization of financial and technical resources from multiple sources to design and implement country-specific strategies.
Leaders pledge to restore additional 18 million hectares of critical landscapes as part of global target – IUCN
Government and business representatives from Burundi, Honduras, India, Mexican States, KPK province of Pakistan and Asia Pulp and Paper have announced new pledges today to restore up to 18 million hectares of degraded forests, as part of the UN climate change conference (COP 21) taking place in Paris. The contributions come under The Bonn Challenge, a global initiative launched by Germany and IUCN in 2011 to have 150 million hectares of deforested and degraded land under restoration by 2020.
Report: Majority of national climate plans address agriculture, but most lack funds for footing annual USD 5 billion bill – CCAFS
Countries at the UN climate talks in Paris have made it clear that addressing agriculture in the context of climate change is a priority, according to the first-ever comprehensive analysis of agriculture in the national climate plans submitted to the United Nations in the lead up to the talks. The analysis by the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) released at the Global Landscapes Forum reveals that agriculture is discussed in 80% of the so-called Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), and points to a major funding gap for implementing most of the proposed actions.
How Do Agricultural and Food Production, Distribution and Consumption Offer Solutions to Some of the World’s Most Pressing Environmental Concerns? – UNEP press release
The UN Environment Programme’s initiative ‘The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity’ (TEEB) has initiated a project aiming to show how different food systems and practices can impact the environment, health outcomes and culture….The study has been commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and is being led by Alexander Müller, Former Assistant Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), and a group on renowned international experts in agri-food supported by the UNEP TEEB Office in Geneva. The Interim Report will be presented as part of the Global Landscapes Forum in Paris on Sunday, December 6th.
Landscapes for sustainability: Potential, yes. Finance, not so much. – CIFOR
New areas of investment are needed to bring the private sector on board, speakers say at Global Landscapes Forum.
Major partnership launched to save precious peatlands – Zoological Society of London
In the wake of Southeast Asia’s worst summer haze crisis on record, a pioneering five-year conservation project designed to achieve sustainable, landscape-level protection for South Sumatra’s globally important peatland and coastal lowland habitats was today unveiled at the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) in Paris.
FAO AND GLOBAL MECHANISM OF THE UNCCD LAUNCH NEW PUBLICATION ON FINANCING FOR FOREST AND LANDSCAPE RESTORATION – The UNCCD Global Mechanism
More than USD 300 billion are needed per year to restore the world’s degraded land in order to achieve a new Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target by 2030, according to a new publication by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Global Mechanism of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (GM). The joint discussion paper, Sustainable financing for forest and landscape restoration: opportunities, challenges, and the way forward, was launched today at the Global Landscapes Forum in Paris during a session on “Investing in integrated landscapes to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals”.
WBCSD launches new platform to increase business investment in nature – World Business Council for Sustainable Development
Global Landscapes Forum, Paris, December 6, 2015 – Today, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) launches an online platform, Natural Infrastructure for Business, to increase awareness of the business opportunities in investing in ecosystems – or natural infrastructure – and scale up action. The ultimate objective of the initiative is that by 2020, companies systematically assess natural infrastructure options when investing in new sites or projects, thereby contributing to the protection, restoration and creation of new ecosystems.
“Climate is tapping into my coffee” at #COP21 – IFAD
Climate is not only modifying what is inside our dishes, but also what is in our coffee cups. The Global Landscape Forum, held in Paris Saturday, presented some recent works showing that Arabica coffee production is tremendously threatened by global warming. Warmer climate means warmer soils, and that means less production.
SIANI at the Global Landscapes Forum 2015 – Swedish International Agricultural Network Initiative
The motto of the Global Landscapes 2015 implies that everything is connected. Indeed, land use change and related issues are among major drivers of the changing climate. As the global leaders gather in Paris for the COP21, the Global Landscape Forum aims to leverage the opportunity to shape the global development agenda. The Forum, led by the International Center for Forestry Research (CIFOR), will gather over 3000 participants. Over 100 organizations will host a variety of Discussion Forums, Launchpads, and Landscapes Labs within the pavilions.
50 youth innovators and the power of team building – Landscapes for people, food and nature
Day 1 of the Youth in Landscapes initiative’s workshop, Global Landscapes Forum, Paris
Over 600 youth (defined as 18 – 30 years old) have registered to attend this year’s GLF. To put this in perspective: when you look around you at the GLF, almost one in every five delegates will be a student or young professional just starting out in their career.
Day 2: UN Climate Change Conference: Governor Brown, Ambassador Hartley Welcome 15 New Signatories to Under 2 MOU Climate Pact – Governor of California
…Later, Governor Brown delivered keynote remarks at the “2015 Global Landscapes Forum” following a plenary session featuring international scientists and government leaders seeking to bridge the divide between climate research and policy making–a longstanding priority in California. This event, one of the COP21’s largest “side events,” was organized by the French government, Center for International Forestry Research, UNEP, the World Bank and others.
Report: Majority of national climate plans address agriculture, but most lack funds for footing annual USD 5 billion bill – Future Earth
Countries at the UN climate talks in Paris have made it clear that addressing agriculture in the context of climate change is a priority, according to the first-ever comprehensive analysis of agriculture in the national climate plans submitted to the United Nations in the lead up to the talks. The analysis by the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) released at the Global Landscapes Forum reveals that agriculture is discussed in 80% of the so-called Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), and points to a major funding gap for implementing most of the proposed actions.
Zero deforestation: Easy promises, hard to deliver – Eco-Business
A new CDP report highlights that the world’s largest commodity and manufacturing firms are moving too slowly in implementing their zero deforestation pledges. It suggests a five-step plan to help them achieve it….Launched at the Global Landscapes Forum, held on the sidelines of the UN climate change conference in Paris, the report is based on survey responses from 171 of the world’s largest companies.
COP21: Ministers get down to work as climate talks enter final straight – BusinessGreen
…Yesterday, hundreds of delegates gathered in central Paris for the Global Landscapes Forum, where the leader of 17 million indigenous Indonesian people, called on negotiators to reinsert a mention of human rights into the draft. “You cannot protect the forest from Paris, Oslo or New York,” said Abdon Nababan, Secretary General of the Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago. “Only those of use who are protecting it already can continue to do so.” A new report unveiled at the Forum showed 20 per cent of the carbon in tropical forests is located on indigenous lands and research has previously shown that good land rights in a country translate into healthier forests.
Insecure land rights of indigenous peoples and investor risk, social conflict, climate change – Green Area
The Nature Conservancy and the International Indigenous Peoples’ Forum on Climate change will host a panel a5 15:30 at the Global Landscape Forum concerning land rights of indigenous peoples and the tremendous pressure that extractive, hydropower and agricultural development projects are putting on natural landscapes and Indigenous and local community territories, The respect and recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ rights, customary land tenure and traditional knowledge have significantly contributed to more sustainable use and management of various ecosystems.
