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N4C Weekly Briefing

7-13 December 2022
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This is the final edition of 2022. The weekly briefing will return to your inboxes on January 11th. We hope you have a wonderful holiday season and restful break.
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ON THE GROUND AT COP15

Things are heating up around negotiations for a new Global Biodiversity Framework in Montreal. Here are a few key issues that are driving the negotiations according to N4C network on the ground: 
  • Overall, the text of the agreement is far behind schedule.
  • Language around a goal of nature-positive by 2030 is still in the text, but not secured.
  • For the goal of conserving 30% of the natural world by 2030, negotiations around the details around its language of the goal have been contentious and long. The final details -- in particular the percentage itself -- likely won't be resolved until the environment ministers of the 196 members of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity arrive on the scene for the December 15-17 high-level segment.
  • For resource mobilisation, there have been long, difficult discussions regarding the Regional Management strategy, but no movement on financial targets themselves.
  • Various parts of the negotiations will be unlocked this week with the High-Level Segment, the arrival of ministers and various motivating events including finance day on the 15th and anticipated country announcements.
Featured News
What does ‘nature positive’ mean – and can it rally support to stop biodiversity loss?
The Guardian, Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield, 13 December
 
The Guardian reviews the term nature positive and what it really means when brought up as a goal during COP15 negotiations and amongst the broader biodiversity community. BBC covers the stark warnings from the United Nations' biodiversity chief on what's at stake during the COP15 negotiations. "Biodiversity is the foundation of life. Without it, there is no life," Elizabeth Maruma Mrema told BBC Radio 4's Inside Science programme. Agri Investor, Reuters, The Guardian and NPR all provide overviews of what the negotiations will cover. Reuters reports on the UN's top priorities for restoring ecosystems. Bloomberg columnist David Fickling declares the world is winning on climate but losing its fight to protect biodiversity, which means the world will see defeat on both fronts. Context shares a commentary from Marco Lambertini, director general of WWF, that argues we can win the effort to protect biodiversity if world leaders are ambitious enough. 

Afrik21 reports that South Africa is focusing on securing genuine commitments for financing to support biodiversity conservation in developing countries. Euractiv covers the EU's position entering COP15 negotiations stating the EU is resolved to show its leadership by defending targets to halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity. E&E News notes that any global agreement finalised at COP15 will be done without support of the United States because it has never ratified the Convention on Biological Diversity, a step required to vote on official procedures. The Montreal Gazette carries a comment from Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s minister of environment and climate change, and Virginijus Sinkevičius, European  commissioner for the environment, oceans and fisheries, on the ambitious goals for COP15. 

Carbon Pulse digs into the negotiations of the 30x30 target stating that experts believe that without agreement to address drivers of degradation the goal will not be achieved. The Guardian reports on the divisions created by the proposed 30x30 plan at COP15.
Will the world join Indigenous peoples in relationship with nature at COP-15? [Commentary]
Mongabay, Jennifer Tauli Corpuz and Valérie Courtois, 9 December
 
Mongabay shares a commentary from Valérie Courtois, Director of the Indigenous Leadership Initiative and a member of the Innu community of Mashteutiatsh, and Jennifer Tauli Corpuz, Global Policy and Advocacy Lead for Nia Tero from the Kankana-ey Igorot People of Mountain Province in the Philippines, asking if world leaders will finally support Indigenous Peoples at COP15. Reuters covers some of the main demands that Indigenous leaders are calling for at COP15 including stronger claims to land rights, greater participation in talks around goals like the 30x30 conservation target, and increasing overall ambition for protecting nature. Grist reports on the efforts of Indigenous leaders to insert themselves into negotiations around the 30x30 target specifically to prevent the effort from becoming "the biggest land grab in history". Gizmodo covers another cause for concern for Indigenous Peoples who wish to protect and own their land by sharing a new report that finds over half the world's energy transition minerals are on Indigenous lands.
Businesses want COP15 nature summit to deliver clarity
Reuters, Isla Binnie and Simon Jessop, 7 December
 
Reuters reports that businesses are requesting that COP15 deliver more clarity and an ambitious agreement with strong policies that will provide guidance to companies seeking to change. Context shares a commentary from Maria Mendiluce, CEO of the We Mean Business Coalition, stating that businesses must invest in nature to keep the 1.5C goal in reach. BusinessGreen carries a commentary from Craig Bennett, chief executive of the Wildlife Trusts, stating the green business community must fly the flag for 30x30.  Reuters shares the news that a campaign called "Nature Action 100" launched by 11 investment firms to engage a select 100 companies whose business have the highest impact on nature to assess and report any harm to nature from their businesses and investments, which could encompass their supply chains and portfolios. BusinessGreen covers a statement from 150 top investors demanding an ambitious global biodiversity treaty at COP15. Bloomberg reports that a group of investors with a combined $3 trillion in funds have launched a new campaign to pressure the companies they own to do more to fight the decline in biodiversity. Bloomberg covers a new UN study that says “biocredits” may help boost conservation financing, but critics warn they might enable greenwashing. Responsible Investor reports that ShareAction finds Europe's 25 largest banks lack adequate biodiversity strategies. Carbon Pulse covers the launch of a new tool to track finance flows for biodiversity alignment from NatureFinance.
Historic EU law against deforestation-linked imports ignores Brazil’s Cerrado
Mongabay, Alec Luhn, 8 December
 
Mongabay reports activists are arguing that the recently approved EU deforestation law only covers forests and not “other wooded land” such as Brazil’s biodiverse Cerrado savanna, almost half of which has already been cleared, mostly to grow soy for export to China and the EU. Activists also note that a proposal that would require companies to respect international law on Indigenous and human rights also failed to make it into the final text, which only mandates that they follow national laws in the country of production. The law's text also doesn’t regulate corn, nor does it apply to the financial institutions that lend to commodity producers. Euractiv reports that livestock fed with deforestation-linked soy products will still be found on European supermarket shelves under the new EU deforestation law, prompting outrage among EU agrifood stakeholders who warn this harms the environment to the detriment of EU producers.
JetBlue Moves Away From Carbon Credits to Focus on Greener Fuel
Bloomberg, Mary Schlangenstein, 8 December
 
Bloomberg covers JetBlue's announcement that the company is walking away from the purchase of carbon offsets for its domestic flights in 2023, instead opting to step up its investment in and use of  sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The carrier disclosed the shift Tuesday as part of a wider commitment to reducing lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions from jet fuel by 50% per revenue ton kilometer by 2035 from 2019 levels, a reduction the carrier said is its most aggressive near-term target. JetBlue earlier pledged to reach net zero emissions by 2040, a decade ahead of a broader airline industry target. Verge, EcoWatch, and Carbon Credits also cover the story.
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
 
We Mean Business releases new guidance – created in partnership with Exponential Roadmap Initiative and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) – aimed at companies looking to establish themselves as corporate climate leaders, covering actions to cut emissions from across their value chains in line with science; better protect, manage and restore nature within company value chains as a part of their emissions targets; and invest now in protecting and restoring nature beyond their value chains.
--
Salesforce announces it is expanding three environmental initiatives to advance nature-based solutions at COP15. The announcements began by introducing the first four recipients of Salesforce’s Accelerator for Nature. The accelerator, announced at COP27 last month, is designed to help nonprofits explore and scale urgently-needed climate solutions. 
--
Oxford University and UNEP launch the Nature Positive Universities Alliance, a growing network of higher education institutions across the world, working together under a pledge to advance efforts to halt, prevent and reverse nature loss by addressing their impact on the environment.
--
Friends of the Earth shares a report that exposes the strategies and tactics used by corporate actors in the Convention on Biological Diversity. The many business coalitions and their members, and the greenwashing proposals they come up with, are also explained in detail. 
--
Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research, the National Center for Appropriate Technology  and American Farmland Trust release a report summarizing how sustainably produced and applied biochar will reduce GHG emissions to mitigate climate change and build healthy high functioning soils. Additionally, the paper outlines research needs and gaps to scale up implementation and establish a pyrolysis biochar bioenergy industry. 
--
Global Canopy develops an investment mandate to help family offices and foundations ensure that their portfolios are free from commodity-driven deforestation, conversion and associated human rights abuses.
--
UNEP Finance for Nature shares a knowledge hub of financial solutions from innovative finance facilities, business incubators and coalitions that develop practical solutions to accelerate private investment in sustainable land use.
--
Cutter Consortium publishes the first in a two part series on the role business in a Nature Positive world.
--
Leading Scientists releases a letter calling upon world leaders to establish the necessary protections for peatlands at COP15.
--
Landscale shares that it has established a fund to which locally-led landscape coalitions can apply to receive its Validated by LandScale service for the highly reduced fee of $500. 
--
IUCN releases its Restoration Barometer report. The Restoration Barometer is a platform used by governments to track the progress of their restoration targets
--
PwC shares a report on the growth of the Nature Tech market. Their analysis of nature tech start-ups estimates that investment in the sector has grown to around US$2 billion in 2022, an average rate of growth of 52% per year since 2018.
--
Rights + Resources publishes a new paper that provides an initial overview of emerging experiences with “fit for purpose” approaches to channel resources at scale to Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and Afro-descendant Peoples and their supporting organizations to conserve and manage forests and rural landscapes.
--
UNEP–IUCN–ILO shares a report, Decent Work in Nature-based Solutions, that provides a framework for assessing employment in NbS, with empirical evaluation of current and potential future global employment in NbS for the first time. 
CASE STUDY OF THE WEEK 
Farming communities in Burkina Faso are affected by land degradation, which degrades their ability to grow and sell crops. This has created widespread poverty, as local communities are unable to grow enough crops to eat and sell to earn an income. The TreeAid Burkina Faso project aims to improve food security and income for 210,000 smallholder farmers by strengthening resilience to climate change, using sustainable intensification. This approach entails using agroforestry and composting to increase productivity on agricultural land. Farmers will be trained on these practices through 255 training sessions. The project focuses on the development and strength of maize, rice, sorghum and cowpeas value chains. Since its commencement in 2021, the project has set up demonstration sites for farmers, completed a baseline study, and begun distributing resources.

N4C is compiling an index of NBS case studies, together with an interactive map, to highlight action on the ground. Each week, we will be choosing a case study to present, to help give concrete examples of work being done to bring NBS theory into practice. 
STAT OF THE WEEK
c
52% 

The annual growth in investment int he nature tech market since 2018 according to PwC's report. The market is estimated to be worth USD $2 Billion in 2022. 
GOOD NEWS
Midwest farms are using more cover crops. Why that’s good news.
Satellite data shows that cover crops have “significantly” increased throughout the US Midwest. Overall, researchers find that the use of cover crops increased from just 1.8 percent in 2011 to 7.2 percent in 2021. Instead of being bare and exposed to the elements and erosion, fields with cover crops resist erosion. As the crop grows and decomposes, its nutrients are absorbed by the soil. And according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the crops can dry out wet fields before planting and even increase future crop yields.
NATURE JOBS/OPPORTUNITIES
 
In this section, we'll be posting NBS-related jobs as a service to the community. If you have an opportunity you'd like featured in the newsletter, please send the details to us. 
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Media Round-Up

Conservation

Three ways financial institutions can step up to tackle biodiversity loss today [Commentary]
Share Action, Eve Gleeson, 7 December

Why Plants Matter
Reuters, Daisy Chung, Gloria Dickie, Jitesh Chowdhury and Simon Scarr, 8 December

GEF’s 8th funding cycle includes over $33 million for biodiversity
Afrik21, Boris Ngounou, 8 December
 
Peat on land and kelp at sea as Argentina protects tip of Tierra del Fuego 
Mongabay, Elizabeth Claire Alberts, 8 December
 
How Seychelles ocean plants could help tackle climate change  
BBC News, Dingindaba Jonah Buyoya, 9 December

Newest national park boon for biodiversity
Mirage News, 11 December
 
Officials talk biodiversity as drought stunts Kenya wildlife  
AP News, Wanjohi Kabukuru, Brian Inganga and Desmond Tiro, 7 December
 
Why H&M is Pushing for Mandatory Biodiversity Disclosures 
Sourcing Journal, Jasmin Malik Chua, 9 December
 
B.C. to add protections for ‘high profile’ endangered species  
The Narwhal, Sarah Cox, 7 December
 
Getting Real in Climate Communication With Joanna Benn 
Communicating Climate Change, 12 December
 
Fashion majors urged to set science-based climate targets  
Edie, Sarah George, 9 December
 
Examining the future of Finland's forests and peatlands as a carbon sink
Phys.org, Marianne Mustonen, 7 December 
 
Countries making risky bet on forests and soils to reach net zero
Phys.org, University of East Anglia, 7 December 


Indigenous and Local Communities

White House Releases First-of-a-Kind Indigenous Knowledge Guidance for Federal Agencies  
The White House, 1 December

Trudeau announces $800M for Indigenous-led conservation initiatives
CBC, Peter Zimonjic, 7 December

New EU anti-deforestation law falls short, indigenous leaders say
Context, Anastasia Moloney, 12 December

Indigenous Americans broke the cycle of destructive wildfires. Here’s how they did it
Scientific American, Andrew Curry, 7 December
 
30x30 Target – sanctioning extractive tourism and human rights violations in Africa?
CBD Alliance, 8 December
 
Ancient Indigenous practice could curtail today's wildfires
Axios, Ayurella Horn-Muller, 7 December
 
Imprisoned for Farming on Their Ancestral Land: The Grief of Indigenous Peoples in North Sumatra by a Pulp Giant 
Rainforest Journalism Fund, Tonggo Simangunsong and Nithin Coca, 7 December
 
The gold-mining city that is destroying a sacred Venezuelan mountain
The Washington Post, Samantha Schmidt, Ana Vanessa Herrero and Janice Kai Chen, 6 December
 
Chiefs of Ontario want housing bill repealed  
The Narwhal, Joy SpearChief-Morris, 9 December
 
Eby vows to reverse B.C.’s ‘short-term thinking’ on conservation  
The Narwhal, Sarah Cox, 8 December
 
Indigenous Argentineans Resist Becoming “Sacrifice Zone” for Ecocolonialism  
Truthout, Luis Martín-Cabrera, 6 December


Carbon Markets

US bank foundation pledges funds for blue carbon database 
Carbon Pulse, 8 December
 
Nature carbon fund manager eyes expansion, new funds in 2023 
Carbon Pulse, 8 December

Study: $246bn-worth of global hydropower projects reliant on threatened cloud forests
BusinessGreen, 12 December

New technical paper proposes integrity principles for voluntary biodiversity credit framework
Carbon Pulse, Roy Manuell, 12 December

Osinbajo: Carbon Credit Market Can Create Positive Effect on Nigeria’s Economy
This Day, Deji Elumoye, 10 December
 
Indianapolis City-County Council moves forward with carbon credit resolution 
IER Indiana Environmental Reporter, Timberly Ferree, 8 December
 
Consultants lay out draft basics for a global voluntary biodiversity credit market 
Carbon Pulse, 7 December
 
French ag carbon startup raises €3 mln in pre-seed funding
Carbon Pulse, 8 December
 
REDD credit prices crash to rock bottom value amid lack of year-end demand 
Carbon Pulse, 7 December
 
World Bank, IETA, Singapore launch global initiative to unify carbon credit registry data
Carbon Pulse, 7 December
 
The EU’s Carbon Removal Certification Framework: political leadership or voluntary hurdle?
Euractiv,  Victoria Harvey, 8 December
 
World Bank, partners launch tracking system to clean up carbon markets  
Reuters, Susanna Twidale, and Simon Jessop, 7 December
 
BP affiliate pulls back from Washington carbon forest plan  
Capitalpress.com, Don Jenkins, 1 December
 
Enviva and GreenTrees Partner to Remove 90,000 Metric Tons of CO2e through Afforestation and Nature-Based Carbon Removal Credit Programs in Southeastern U.S. 
Business Wire, 1 December
 
How biodiversity credits can deliver benefits for business, nature and local communities
ICAO Council moves four offset programmes towards CORSIA participation, delays re-eligibility decision 
Carbon Pulse, 9 December
 
CARB forest offset crediting is conservative
Climate Trust, December
 
Amazon offers sneak peek at new carbon credit label  
Greenbiz, Jesse Klein, 12 December


Nature Loss

‘Eco’ wood burners produce 450 times more pollution than gas heating – report 
The Guardian, Damian Carrington, 8 December

Animals Are Running Out of Places to Live
The New York Times, Catrin Einhorn and Lauren Leatherby, 9 December

The Royal Bank Of Canada’s Financing Of Canadian Gold Miner Belo Sun Denounced During Biodiversity Summit
Forests & Finance, 8 December

Promised prosperity, drowning in debt
The Gecko Project, Mongabay, and BBC, 12 December

 
Mennonites deforest Peruvian Amazon, encroach on Indigenous lands
Mongabay, Romina Castagnino, 8 December

Brazil risks losing control of the Amazon to organized crime, judge warns
Reuters, Anthony Boadle and Ricardo Brito, 8 December

Tougher action needed to stop soy deforestation in Brazil
Global Canopy, 7 December

Deforestation accelerated in Brazil while climate talks were underway in Egypt
Mongabay, 9 December

Carlos Nobre: ‘Nature more powerful for Amazon economy than extraction’
Diálogo Chino, Fermín Koop, 9 December

Revealed: Brazil goldminers carve illegal ‘Road to Chaos’ out of Amazon reserve
The Guardian, Tom Phillips, 12 December
 
As EU finalizes renewable energy plan, forest advocates condemn biomass
Mongabay, Justin Catanoso, 7 December
 
A city in nature — or a city without nature? The uncertain fate of Singapore’s last forests 
Eco-Business, Robin Hicks, Tim Ha, Sonia Sambhi, Rachel Teng, Gillian Parker
 
A deadly wildfire traumatized their town. Can nature help them heal?
The Washington Post, Sarah Kaplan, 9 December
 
Marfrig advances and JBS falls in ESG meat industry ranking 
Capital Reset, Ilana Cardial, 7 December
 
Bill threatens more oil extraction, roads in Guatemala’s protected forests
Mongabay, Maxwell Radwin, 9 December
 
Global Canopy allies with family offices to pressure asset managers on deforestation 
Carbon Pulse, 9 December
 
What Does 30 Years of Global Deforestation Look Like?
Visual Capitalist, Aran Ali, 8 December
 
The time is right to ban uranium mining in the Grand Canyon. But the Senate needs to hurry. [Commentary]
Grist, Brett Marsh, 12 December
 
'Firmageddon': Researchers find 1.1 million acres of dead trees in Oregon
NBC News, Evan Bush, 11 December
 
Shrinking natural habitats push wildlife and cities into contact 
Al Jazeera, 7 December
 
Advancement of soy project next to the cradle of the American man generates fear 
UOL, Carlos Madeiro, 12 December


Restoration

The UK’s Tree-Planting Campaign Is Falling Behind  
Bloomberg, ​​Willem Marx, 9 December 
 
Green Finance Institute debuts new nature investment toolkit  
BusinessGreen News, James Murray, 8 December
 
Extinctions, shrinking habitat spur 'rewilding' in cities  
AP News, John Flesher, 7 December
 
$30 Million Forest Restoration Project Getting Underway
Pagos Daily Post, Alex Handloff, 1 December
 
Climate Fund for Nature: Kering and L'Occitane launch €300m nature investment fund 
BusinessGreen News, James Murray, 12 December

 


Nature Tech

Drones help reduce carbon emissions in forestry work  
chroniclejournal.com, Sandi Krasowski, 29 November
 
Drones Carry So-Called “Dragon Eggs” to Prevent Wildfires
Analytics Insight, 29 November

COP15: Can tech help solve our biodiversity crisis? [Commentary]
Environmental Finance, Lucy Almond, 8 December

The technology that is revolutionizing the study of biodiversity
Capital Reset, Sergio Teixeira Jr., 12 December

Nature tech – what is it and why is it important for climate and nature? [Commentary]
World Economic Forum, Lucy almond and Tony Lent, 12 December

Sustainable Forestry

Ghana/Sierra Leone: SEFA finances studies for 2 biomass plants  
Afrik 21, Jean Marie Takouleu, 8 December
 
BNP Paribas AM acquires majority stake in International Woodland Company
Agri Investor, Binyamin Ali, 9 December
 
Wood-energy sector worried by EU attempt to limit biomass use  
Euractiv, Valentina Romano, 6 December
 
Manulife launches carbon-focused timber vehicle seeking $500m
Agri Investor, Chris Janiec, 12 December

Manulife joins Trillion Trees Initiative on heels of launching forest carbon fund
Carbon Pulse, Matt Lithgow, 12 December

Climate Asset Management raises $650m across two funds
Agri Investor, Binyamin Ali, 12 December

Nuveen global timberland fund makes first acquisition
Agri Investor, Binyamin Ali, 13 December


Agriculture and Soil Health

A pillar of the climate-smart agriculture movement is on shaky ground  
Food and Environment Reporting Network, Gabriel Popkin, 7 December
 
How agroforestry can restore degraded lands and provide income in the Amazon
Mongabay, Avener Prado, Ignacio Amigo, Sam Cowie, 9 December
 
An Indian spiritual leader is urging the world to 'save soil.' Experts say he's not helping.
Grist, Diana Kruzman, 9 December

U.S. agriculture agency extends climate funding to small farmers
Reuters, Leah Douglas, 12 December

 
Flagship EU Green Farming Reforms in Peril as Lobbyists Exploit Ukraine War  
DeSmog, Clare Carlile and Hazel Healy, 9 December

U.S. carbon farming takes root - but do the economics add up?
Context, Carey L. Biron, 12 December
 
Midwest farms are using more cover crops. Why that's good news.
The Washington Post, Erin Blakemore, 10 December
 
Billionaires See Greatest Opportunity in Making Impact in ‘Smart’ Agriculture 
Barron's, Fang Block, 8 December
 
Rural voters 'in the trenches' on climate, leery of Biden  
AP News, Nuha Dolby, 10 December
 
Biofuels and sustainability: Time for the EU to get its story straight [Commentary]
Euractiv, David Carpintero, 9 December
 
House to try to override veto of EPA spending bill 
Politico, Marc Heller, 12 December

Events

Biodiversity as a key asset for forest restoration in Europe 
Date: 14 December
Hosts: Global Landscapes Forum


How Innovative Finance Solutions are Re-Shaping Conservation Efforts: Examples from around the World
Date: 14 December
Hosts: IUCN, UNDP, RSPB


Applying HCV Approach at Landscape Scale: From Screening to Protection 
Date: 15 December
Hosts: WEF


China’s Role in Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Development 
Date: 16 December
Host: IISD


2023 Plant Futures Symposium 
Date: 28-29 January
Host: Plant Futures

Nature4Climate's Weekly Briefing summarises content from international media outlets (and our partner organisations) on stories, developments and events that relate to nature-based solutions. Our editorial policy is to circulate articles and opinion pieces whether we agree or disagree with viewpoints represented. Please submit NCS jobs, news, reports and events for the newsletter to info@nature4climate.org.

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