Search Climate Insights Directory

The Consejo Comunitario General Los Riscales manages approximately 31,469 hectares of biodiverse ecosystems in the Gulf of Tribugá, Colombia. Through a combination of ancestral knowledge, collective land titles granted in 2002, and strategic alliances, the community has implemented sustainable fishing and agricultural practices and established the Distrito Regional de Manejo Integrado (DRMI) Golfo de TribugáCabo Corrientes to protect marine resources. Despite facing threats from the proposed Puerto de Tribugá deep-water port, illegal logging, and armed conflict involving the ELN and AGC, the community maintains a strong conservationist vocation driven by spiritual identity and food security. While the community is open to the OECM framework to increase international visibility and funding, they emphasize that such recognition must be a collective decision and respect their autonomy.

The Sapara Nation in Ecuador manages 322,029 hectares of high-biodiversity rainforest through a spiritual cosmovision and traditional governance. While the community of Llanchamacocha has established strict conservation zones like Kamunguishi and sustainable ecotourism via the Naku project, they face significant threats from oil exploration (specifically blocks 79 and 83), illegal logging, and internal fragmentation. State-led incentive programs like Socio Bosque (PSB) have provided financial support but also triggered internal conflicts over benefit distribution. The document argues that long-term conservation requires full legal land titling, respect for Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), and financing mechanisms that align with indigenous spiritual values and autonomy.

The report examines the 'renewable energy–land nexus', noting that while renewables are essential for climate mitigation, they generally require more land than fossil fuels. It advocates for siting energy systems on degraded land and implementing dual-land-use strategies to create synergistic benefits for soil health, water management, and community resilience.

The Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) assessment of the SUNCASA initiative in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia, finds that nature-based solutions (NbS) such as afforestation and urban tree planting provide a return of USD 1.36 in benefits for every USD 1 invested over 25 years. Key economic benefits include USD 1.35 million in avoided flood damage to infrastructure and USD 930,000 in savings from climate-related health expenses. Environmentally, the interventions are projected to store up to 175,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide and create nearly 7,000 jobs by 2050, enhancing the city's resilience to floods, droughts, and heat.

The PrAda 2+ project is a six-year initiative designed to adapt agricultural value chains in Madagascar to climate change, specifically targeting the coffee, clove, peanut, pepper, and vanilla sectors. With a total budget of 61,338,446.72 Euros (including 43,623,766.13 Euros from the Green Climate Fund), the project aims to benefit 314,800 direct and 2,650,000 indirect beneficiaries across the regions of Androy, Anosy, Atsimo-Atsinanana, Vatovavy, Fitovinany, and Atsinanana. The project focuses on three main components: implementing climate-resilient agriculture (CRA) technologies, expanding financial services for CRA investments through the Agricultural Development Fund (FDA), and improving the entrepreneurial and institutional environment for agricultural services. Key interventions include the dissemination of tailored agrometeorological information, the promotion of climate-resilient crop varieties, and the establishment of Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs).

The Amazonia Viva Program is a large-scale initiative requesting 200 million USD from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and 699.47 million USD in co-financing from the World Bank to protect the Amazon biome. The program targets a total of 3 million beneficiaries, including 993,609 direct beneficiaries, and aims to mitigate 8,468,951 tCO2eq over 20 years. It is structured into three components: National Programs and Actions, Regional Cooperation, and Program Management. Key interventions include securing land tenure, restoring degraded lands, promoting agroforestry, and strengthening transboundary governance and climate monitoring. The program specifically focuses on vulnerable groups, including Indigenous Peoples and Afro-descendants, who manage nearly 50% of the Amazon's territories.

The Dominica Community Resilience Enhancement Project (DOMCREP) is a 60-month initiative requesting USD 24.53 million in grants from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to enhance climate resilience in Dominica. The project focuses on eight highly vulnerable communities, targeting improvements in climate-smart agriculture, the upgrading of national and community-level Early Warning Systems (EWS), and the retrofitting of multi-purpose emergency shelters with independent solar power and water storage. Key components include a matching grant mechanism for farmers to adopt resilient technologies, the development of a climate resilience knowledge hub, and the updating of national policies to integrate resilience principles. The project is executed jointly by the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC) and the Government of Dominica's Ministry of Finance, Economic Development, Climate Resilience, and Social Security.

The briefing presents an economic case for investing in natural capital, asserting that nature-based solutions can provide over 50% of the cost-effective global mitigation needed for a 2°C pathway. It highlights that wetlands and forests generate trillions in annual ecosystem services, far exceeding the costs of their protection and the adaptation finance needs of developing countries. The text notes that while rehabilitating nature and transforming food systems can yield returns between 6.8 and 51 times the investment, current financial flows remain misaligned, with significant funding still directed toward harmful environmental subsidies.

The report argues that temporary CRCF units from carbon farming are currently of low quality due to insufficient management of non-permanence and additionality risks, making them unsuitable for offsetting emissions. It assesses proposed EU agri-food policies—including an Agricultural Emissions Trading System (AgETS) and Mandatory Climate Standards (MCS)—concluding that allowing these units as offsets would undermine environmental integrity. The authors recommend shifting toward activity-based payments, either through a reformed Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) or other public funding mechanisms, to promote carbon farming without the integrity risks associated with result-based crediting.

The report examines the intersection of climate change and food security in Nigeria, highlighting how extreme weather, conflict, and poor infrastructure threaten agricultural productivity. It analyzes the alignment of the FMAFS Road Map, NATIP, and the NDC, while identifying critical gaps in budget utilization and policy coordination. The document advocates for a shift toward community-led, climate-smart agriculture and improved financial transparency to achieve long-term resilience.

The report evaluates the impact of SUNCASA-implemented nature-based solutions (NbS) in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia, focusing on the Dechatu River Catchment. Using the SAVi methodology, it projects that interventions including afforestation, agroforestry, and urban tree planting will generate a discounted net benefit of ETB 101.6 million from 2025 to 2050, with a benefit-cost ratio (BCR) of 1.36. The primary economic driver is the avoidance of flood-related infrastructure damage, valued at ETB 188.1 million. The assessment also highlights significant intangible benefits, such as avoided health costs from water pollution (ETB 65.8 million) and carbon sequestration (ETB 54.2 million). Sensitivity analyses indicate the project remains viable even with a 94% tree survival rate or under higher carbon pricing scenarios.

The report examines the land-use intensity of various renewable energy sources and proposes dual-land-use systems—such as agrivoltaics and ecovoltaics—to mitigate land degradation and enhance biodiversity and food security. It emphasizes the need for cross-sectoral policy coordination, inclusive governance, and targeted finance to ensure the energy transition does not compromise land health or local livelihoods.

The report highlights that natural regeneration in the Brazilian Amazon could capture up to 26 GtCO2, presenting a significant economic opportunity. It proposes the Reversing Deforestation Mechanism (RDM), a jurisdictional results-based payment system that could mobilize up to US$ 784 billion over 30 years at a carbon price of US$ 50 per ton. The RDM is designed to complement other financial tools: JREDD+ for reducing deforestation and the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) for maintaining standing forests. The analysis emphasizes that states like Pará and Mato Grosso have the highest restoration potential due to cumulative deforestation, while Amazonas is the primary beneficiary of standing forest payments.

The report argues that tropical forests must be transitioned from being viewed as climate risks to central climate solutions. Based on an assessment of 91 countries, it highlights that restoring areas deforested since 2001 could capture up to 49 GtCO2. To achieve this, the authors propose the Reversing Deforestation Mechanism (RDM), a results-based financial tool designed to reward net carbon removals at the jurisdictional level. RDM is intended to complement existing frameworks like Jurisdictional REDD+ (JREDD+) and the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF). At a carbon price of US$ 50 per ton, the RDM could remove up to 2 GtCO2 annually, potentially closing 11–13% of the 2035 emissions gap and generating US$ 100 billion in annual revenues.

The report identifies a massive funding gap for sustainable livestock in Latin America and the Caribbean, where the sector is responsible for approximately 28% of regional emissions but receives minimal climate investment. It analyzes investment risks—including governance instability, physical climate threats like El Niño, and macroeconomic volatility—and evaluates the suitability of various public and private investors. The document proposes three scenarios: Business-as-Usual, Improved Finance Strategies (IFS), and Improved Finance and Policy Strategies (IFPS), arguing that a combination of blended finance, risk-reduction tools, and institutional reforms is necessary to transition from a heavy reliance on public funding to a diversified capital base. Specific recommendations include implementing first-loss capital, long-term loans, and natural capital accounting to unlock investment in practices such as silvopasture and sustainable feed production.

The report argues that tropical forests should be central to climate strategies, moving from being viewed as a risk to a solution. It analyzes 91 countries, categorizing them by forest cover and deforestation rates, and concludes that forest protection and restoration are compatible with economic growth. To address the funding gap for restoration, the authors propose the Reversing Deforestation Mechanism (RDM), a jurisdictional, results-based payment system for net carbon removals. RDM is designed to complement existing tools like JREDD+ and the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF). Simulations suggest that at a carbon price of US$ 50 per ton, RDM could generate significant annual revenues and remove up to 2 GtCO2 per year globally in its early stages.

The Seeded Initiative is a financial vehicle designed to address a critical bottleneck in Brazil's restoration value chain: the lack of capital for native seedling nurseries. To meet national targets of restoring 12 million hectares by 2030, Brazil needs approximately one billion seedlings annually, but currently produces only 200 million. The initiative employs a revolving debt structure using receivables-backed credit (via CPR-F, CRA, and FIDC instruments) and blended finance to provide working capital and CAPEX support to nurseries. The model transitions from high concessional support in its Proof-of-Concept phase to market-aligned returns in its commercial and scale-up phases. If scaled to one billion seedlings per year, the initiative could enable the restoration of 670,000 to 1 million hectares, removing an estimated 8.6 to 18.3 million tons of CO2e annually.

The report argues that multinational corporations use lobbying networks like the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) to undermine the creation of a legally binding UN treaty on business and human rights. It documents environmental and human rights abuses by Chevron in Ecuador, Total in Uganda and Mozambique, and Shell in Nigeria, illustrating a systemic 'architecture of impunity'. The authors call for the exclusion of corporate lobbyists from UN negotiations to ensure the treaty prioritizes human rights over corporate profit.

The 2025 Forest Declaration Assessment reports that global forests remain in crisis, with 8.07 million hectares of deforestation in 2024, leaving the world 63% off track for 2030 goals. While some natural recovery and national reforms in countries like Brazil and Indonesia show promise, the report finds that corporate commitments are largely unimplemented and public finance for forests is dwarfed by environmentally harmful agricultural subsidies. It calls for a shift from voluntary pledges to mandatory regulations and inclusive governance that secures land rights for Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

The 2025 Forest Declaration Assessment reports that global forests remain in crisis, with 8.1 million hectares lost in 2024 and degradation increasing. Despite some success in natural regeneration and specific national policy reforms in Brazil, Colombia, and Indonesia, the report finds that corporate commitments are largely insufficient and financial flows remain misaligned with conservation goals. It calls for a shift from voluntary corporate pledges to mandatory regulations and inclusive governance that secures land tenure for indigenous peoples and local communities.