GCF: Don’t Gag Civil Society—Public Participation is Not a Check-Box Exercise

A statement by the Center for International Environmental Law criticizing the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for decreasing transparency and hindering civil society participation, specifically regarding a proposed ethics policy and the conduct of the 17th Board Meeting (B.17).

• The Green Climate Fund's (GCF) 17th Board Meeting (B.17) demonstrated a decline in transparency and civil society engagement, characterized by the use of closed-door "informal" meetings for crucial policy discussions without webcasting or broad civil society participation.
• A proposed Policy on Ethics and Conflict of Interest for active observers is described as an overbroad "gag order" because it prohibits observers from acting in ways that might "undermine public confidence and trust in the Fund’s governance," which could prevent them from providing critical feedback or representing their constituencies.
• During the B.17 meeting, the GCF violated its own Governing Instrument and international law by preventing an active civil society observer from speaking until after a decision on the accreditation of entities had been made, and by attempting to censor the observer's comments regarding those entities.
• Civil society organizations (CSOs) provide essential expertise and local community information that helps the GCF manage reputational risk by ensuring it does not fund projects that harm human rights or the environment, or accredit entities with poor track records.

APA

Lennon, E. (2017). GCF: Don’t Gag Civil Society—Public Participation is Not a Check-Box Exercise. Center for International Environmental Law. https://www.ciel.org/gcf-dont-gag-civil-society-public-participation-not-check-box-exercise/

Chicago

Lennon, Erika. GCF: Don’t Gag Civil Society—Public Participation is Not a Check-Box Exercise. Center for International Environmental Law, 2017. https://www.ciel.org/gcf-dont-gag-civil-society-public-participation-not-check-box-exercise/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Lennon |first1=Erika |title=GCF: Don’t Gag Civil Society—Public Participation is Not a Check-Box Exercise |publisher=Center for International Environmental Law |date=29 September 2017 |url=https://www.ciel.org/gcf-dont-gag-civil-society-public-participation-not-check-box-exercise/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{lennon2017gcf, author = {Lennon, Erika}, title = {{GCF: Don’t Gag Civil Society—Public Participation is Not a Check-Box Exercise}}, publisher = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2017}, month = sep, url = {https://www.ciel.org/gcf-dont-gag-civil-society-public-participation-not-check-box-exercise/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }