*[Enwl-eng] Here is the latest news from the High-Level Champions!

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Apr 17, 2024, 12:25:19 PMApr 17
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UN Global Climate Action

17 April 2024

High-Level Champions'

Newsletter

Uplifting Indigenous Climate Leadership 

Welcome to the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions newsletter. In this edition, we preview the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII); a vital platform to empower Indigenous communities around the world, taking place this week in New York, United States.

The UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for COP 28, Her Excellency, Razan Al Mubarak has been a vocal supporter of Indigenous Peoples and their myriad contributions to tackling the climate crisis — from advocacy to environmental stewardship. To mark the event, Al Mubarak recorded a video address calling on multilateral funds and funders to support direct access to finance for Indigenous Peoples. The COP 28 Champion has also just announced the tendering of a new Global Data Study to establish a solid evidence base to showcase the significant contributions of Indigenous Peoples in the critical realm of climate action.

 

The 23rd Session of the UNPFII focuses on the theme of ‘Enhancing Indigenous Peoples’ Right to Self-determination in the Context of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Emphasizing the Voices of Indigenous Youth’. To understand this agenda from the perspective of Indigenous communities, we asked human rights and environmental lawyer, Nonette Royo, about the vast potential to boost Indigenous Peoples’ role as key partners to deliver on countries’ climate, nature and biodiversity commitments.

 

The newsletter also brings updates from the Copenhagen Climate Ministerial, attended by the UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for COP 29, Nigar Arpadarai. Plus, we bring you a unique perspective on the UK net zero transition, from Chris Skidmore, the former Energy and Clean Growth Minister who signed the country’s commitment into law.

 

Read on to learn how the increasing inclusion of Indigenous Peoples opens the door to a new paradigm for climate action and adaptation on a global scale.

Returning to the wisdom of our ancestors 

Nonette Royo, Executive Director, Tenure Facility.

Credit: Tenure Facility

Guest Q&A: Nonette Royo, Executive Director, Tenure Facility


Indigenous Peoples and local communities live on and manage more than half of the world’s land, yet they only have legal ownership of 10% of these territories. Robust Indigenous and local land rights are vital for managing forests, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, preserving biodiversity, and improving livelihoods.

 

Nonette Royo has spent more than 30 years fighting for the tenure rights of Indigenous Peoples communities in the world’s tropical forests, in regions ranging from Latin America to Southeast Asia and Africa. As Executive Director of Tenure Facility, Nonette has helped to map, and protect some 18 million hectares of land – an area equivalent to the size of Cambodia - which is expected to double this year. We spoke to Nonette about how a clear commitment to inclusion underpins her work to strengthen the tenure of Indigenous Peoples Communities and boost their ability to preserve and protect traditional lands and resources.


How does Tenure Facility support Indigenous Communities to protect nature?

 

The Tenure Facility offers grants and technical assistance directly to Indigenous Peoples and local communities, who are self-determined and work collectively, in their efforts to secure tenure, with a particular focus on mitigating climate change, reducing conflict and promoting gender equality.

Members of the Indigenous Siekopai community who reside in the Amazon jungle along Ecuador’s border with Peru.

Credit: Tenure Facility.

How can Indigenous knowledge help us to solve the climate crisis?

 

From the perspective of Indigenous Peoples, the climate crisis is not just a heating crisis - it's a crisis of lifestyle. Humankind’s relationship with nature is in crisis due to a loss of respect for, and connection to nature. The longevity of Indigenous Peoples stretches back thousands of years as they live by the central principle of “only take what you need, and leave the rest for future generations.”

 

Indigenous knowledge can help us to return to the wisdom of our ancestors to survive and overcome the climate crisis. Everyone - whether white, black or whatever colour - has the inherent ability to coexist with nature. But somehow we have put ourselves in a place that is so safe and sanitised - with everything bought from stores - that we have created the illusion of separation from nature. In reality, everything that we consume and use is from the natural world, and our disconnection from our source places puts humankind into existential danger.

 

The existence of Indigenous Peoples is inextricably linked to nature itself - if nature fails, their communities fail, and vice versa. We can relearn the value of this connection from Indigenous Peoples - it’s not just about science, it’s about being part of nature, to protect the conditions for our mutual survival. 

Members of the Gond tribe, breaking and flaking seeds to extract oil in a forest village in east-central India.

Credit: Tenure Facility.

Why is direct funding of Indigenous Communities essential?

 

Direct funding of Indigenous Communities is essential, firstly as it acknowledges that communities that have lived within forests for many generations are acutely aware of the challenges they face and are best placed to implement solutions. Living in partnership with nature can be precarious, but over time communities have learned to survive and thrive by supporting nature. Few external parties have that lived experience, so it makes the most sense for Indigenous Communities to lead on projects and to allocate funds.

 

Now externally-driven problems, such as climate change and deforestation threaten the natural ecosystems that communities depend on, causing issues such as food insecurity, wildfires and droughts. Communities need funds to protect themselves and their territories, but traditionally, only a tiny amount of climate and development funding trickles down to them. This is due to an entrenched mistrust of Indigenous Peoples and misplaced doubts in their ability to handle money. Our experience and data completely debunks these myths. Indigenous Peoples can indeed allocate funds, and conduct effective reporting, for example, using technologies, such as smartphones for data collection and reporting, or aerial drones for surveying lands or GPS devices for mapping.


From providing direct finance to communities, we're seeing that the metrics of accountability, effectiveness and efficiency are all met. Now is the time to break down those bureaucratic barriers to fully empower Indigenous Communities to lead. 

Mapping efforts are integral to recognising and securing land rights as well as ensuring community participation.

Credit: Tenure Facility.

What does inclusion look like for Tenure Facility?

A group of women involved in the management of a local community forest concession and reforestation efforts in the southwest of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Ley Uwera/Tenure Facility.

In the context of Tenure Facility’s work to expand the sustainable management and protection of their forests and lands, real ‘inclusion’ means providing open access to all information at the right time, which promotes full understanding and engagement.

 

To promote their self governance it’s important to ensure that the leaders of Indigenous Peoples Communities are represented fully, plus an understanding of the processes which underpin the election of those leaders is also key. Tribal leaders have a vision for how the community exists with nature which lives in their processes and protocols that are passed down, reinforcing their cultural identity and social cohesion within the community.

 

Click here for the full interview with Nonette Royo.

Copenhagen Climate Ministerial: A milestone on the road to COP 29

The UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for COP 29, Nigar Arpadarai attended the Copenhagen Climate Ministerial and highlighted that momentum behind the clean energy transition is driving both global climate action and real economy impact.

 

The COP 29 Champion reflected that tangible advances in the energy transition, such as the USD 1.7 trillion investment in clean energy in 2023, can now be translated into bold ambition in the next national climate action plans – known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – which are being shaped of COP 30.

 

“When it comes to combating climate change, neither governments nor non-government entities can do it alone,” Arpadarai said. “We need bold climate action from all sectors of society, each of which can push the other forward towards a more prosperous, resilient, zero-carbon economy. It’s been inspiring to hear of bold leadership from countries large and small as we build towards COP29 in Azerbaijan – a platform where all will have an equal voice.”

 

The Copenhagen Ministerial was a key moment for environmental ministers to build on previous climate talks and pave the way for the next generation of national climate transition and resilience plans, which would provide the confidence needed for finance to flow to zero-carbon, climate-resilient, and nature-positive development pathways.

 

Find out more about the key areas of focus for the Champions Team, including recent progress towards a Just Transition Away from fossil fuels, policy incentives to increase finance flows and the next generation of national climate transition and resilience plans.

Learning the lessons of the UK’s net zero transition

Chris Skidmore OBE speaks at New York Climate Week, September 2023. Credit:

Climate Group.

Guest Q&A, Chris Skidmore OBE

As a former UK energy minister, Chris Skidmore OBE signed into law the country’s commitment to curtail emissions to net zero by 2050. Chris went on to lead an independent Net Zero Review, Mission Zero, which set out the ‘historic opportunity’ offered by net zero. The Review travelled to all four nations of the UK, received over 1,800 responses to the Call for Evidence, and held more than 50 roundtables, making it one of the largest national engagement exercises on net zero. It described net zero as the “economic opportunity of the 21st century”, highlighting that the supply of goods and services to enable the global net zero transition could be worth GBP 1tn to UK businesses by 2030.

 

We spoke to Chris about advocating for net zero inside the Government - and the need for key stakeholders, from business, to investors and cities - to engage with governments as they prepare the new phase of climate plans (Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

 

How have you supported the global net zero transition?

Nearly five years ago when I was the UK's Energy and Clean Growth Minister, I had an opportunity to sign into law the UK's commitment to curtail emissions to net zero by 2050. The UK was the first G7 country to make that legislative commitment, so it was a landmark moment. Back then, no one really expected that over the following five years, 92% of global GDP would be represented by a net zero target of some form, as it is today. To understand how the UK could best meet its climate commitments, the then Prime Minister commissioned an independent Net Zero review, which turned into the 340 page Mission Zero report, that sets out the ‘whole of society’ opportunity offered by the transition. 

 

Ever since then, I've been working to research and articulate the benefits and opportunities of net zero - not just as a means to reduce emissions, which is critical - but also to highlight the economic opportunity offered by the transition, in terms of growth, jobs and regeneration.

 

Why is it important for governments to see and hear from the climate community during this NDC countdown phase?

I found it incredibly important as a UK Minister to know that - as a Government - we weren’t just ‘going it alone’ on net zero. If organizations with a large manufacturing and employee base were able to demonstrate their plans to increase productivity and jobs through the transition that really helped to assure bold policymaking to support them. As a politician, you can't measure the outcomes of policy just on the metric of carbon dioxide reductions, as not all stakeholders fully grasp those benefits yet. What they do notice, however, is when major companies clearly and impactfully signal their trajectory, like when Jaguar Land Rover announced its intention to build a £4 billion gigafactory for electric vehicle batteries in the UK.

 

Operationalising net zero is all about coalition building, it’s about demonstrating strength in numbers and showing the path to the future. Businesses now recognize the investment opportunities and - on the flip-side, the risk of standing still, which leads to stranded assets, stranded jobs and stranded businesses.

 

We're living through a revolutionary time. The more people can get out there and explain that net zero equates to growth - and that change should not be feared, but embraced - the faster we can accelerate the transition, and the more value will be generated.

 

Too many companies are participating in ‘green hushing’ - quietly implementing their climate commitments, but behind closed doors. That's a huge mistake. By providing evidence of their commitment and action, companies can fuel engagement with stakeholders - from suppliers, to investors and employees. A major upside is that entire ecosystems can advance towards net zero, while transparent engagement also makes supply chain relationships less transactional, deepening partnerships across sectors.

 

This is an historic, once-in-a-generation moment, like the introduction of electricity - where new ways of thinking are going to advance productivity, efficiency and opportunities for prosperity. I want that to happen in the UK and all over the world.

 

Click here for the full interview with Chris Skidmore.

Race to Resilience Update:

 

Business Leading Resilience Action:

     The Sharm Adaptation Agenda (SAA) and partners launched the "Business Action for Adaptation & Resilience" discussion paper. With the contribution of several Race to Resilience (RTR) Partners sharing how they leverage the SAA to redefine sustainability and drive the global climate agenda forward.

     Partner Resilience First, and other collaborators launched the Climate Resilience Pathways: Catalyzing Private Sector Action. This initiative aims to empower companies to enhance their resilience, scale-up adaptation investment, and drive systemic transformation toward a sustainable future. Leveraging the expertise and resources of nearly 70 leaders in climate, sustainability, strategy, and risk management, they seek to catalyze private sector action on climate resilience by showcasing leading practices and fostering collaboration.

Multilevel Action Leadership:

     Partner, Regions4, published The ‘Transformative Multilevel Action’ we need to see at Biodiversity COP 16. The policy brief shares insights on the critical role of subnational governments in navigating the intertwined challenges of the climate and biodiversity crises, and the action needed to catalyze ambition towards COP 16.

     The Global Mangrove Alliance highlighted the importance of Engaging Local Ecological Knowledge to Inform Mangrove Restoration and Conservation, through the launch of a new guide. The guide shares 21 case studies to provide best practices for engaging with, and harnessing the power of local communities and resources.

     Partner, Risk Informed Early Action Partnership, has launched Early Action: The State of Play 2023 report, providing a snapshot of international, regional and national investments, commitments and activities linked to early warning and early action.

Solution stories of the month:

 

     Accelerating gender-responsive climate resilience in Latin America.

     Empowering Jamaica’s climate resilience through innovative green finance.

Race to Zero Update:

 

Expert Peer Review Group Updates:

     Race to Zero is pleased to announce its new Expert Peer Review Group Co-Chair, Peter Boyd. Peter is about to set out on the Race of his life, 250KM, in the Marathon Des Sables. Find out more here.

     Congratulations to Race to Zero’s Expert Peer Review Group member, Dr Yixian Sun (Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences) who has been awarded a prestigious Future Leaders Fellowship from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).


Partner Updates:

 

     Planet Mark is hosting a Scope 3 Masterclass series throughout April.

     Exponential Roadmap Initiatives consults on a climate solutions framework.

     Small businesses in SME Climate Hub want to take climate action, but there are still significant barriers - including a lack of policies, funding, data on current emissions, and time. More results from their latest survey.

     An updated version of the Net Zero Investment Framework (NZIF) is now open for consultation until 24 April. Mahesh Roy from IIGCC (co-convenor of Net Zero Asset Managers and Paris Aligned Asset Owners and Marrakech Partnership Finance co-focal point) explains why this is important.

     International Wineries for Climate Action shares insights on regenerative viticulture.

     To mark World Water Day, Health Care Without Harm Europe has released an animated video explaining how to dispose of pharmaceuticals correctly at home.

 

Accelerator Updates:

 

     Giki and Environmental Defense Fund are hosting a Race to Zero Employee Engagement webinar on the 21st of May.

     New Accelerator SUCCA Africa will join the COP 29 Champion, Ms. Arpadarai at the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development to showcase the role of non-State actors and business in the lead up to the 2030 and 2063 Agendas. Join virtually on April 18th.


Member Updates:


     Race to Zero is collecting case studies on nature, energy and policy leadership. Please submit member success stories!

     Join an upcoming event on 7th May on the Breakthrough Agenda. Register for session one (9am BST) here or session two (4pm BST) here.

In case you missed it

     The UAE, Azerbaijan and the Brazil COP Presidencies Troika launched the ‘Roadmap to Mission 1.5°C’. In a letter issued to Parties on 21 March, the Troika outlined its objective to raise and reframe ambition for the development process of the next round of NDCs. Throughout 2024, the Troika will host a series of high-level political convenings to assess key barriers to NDC development.

     The co-chairs of the New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance (NCQG) released the 2024 work plan including information on the three Technical Expert Dialogues (TEDs), High-Level Ministerial Dialogue, and consultations with interested non-State actors. The next TED will take place on 23 - 24 April in Cartagena, Colombia, including the participation of non-State actors.

     The chairs of the subsidiary bodies announced on 27 March that the first global dialogue under the UAE Just Transition Work Programme (UAE JTWP) in 2024 will focus on ‘Just Transition pathways to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement through NDCs, NAPs (National Adaptation Plans) and LT-LEDs (long-term low-emission development strategies).’ In preparation, non-State actors are encouraged to share their views on opportunities, best practices, actionable solutions, challenges and barriers relevant to the topic as early as possible, and no later than four weeks before the dialogue (which will take place before SB 60 starting on 3 June). Additionally, non-State actors are invited to provide submissions for other work streams including the mentioned NCQG, the Sharm el-Sheikh mitigation ambition and implementation work programme, or the Sharm el-Sheikh dialogue. You can also consult the list of all calls for submissions from COP 28 and how to make a submission here.

     At the Copenhagen Climate Ministerial in Denmark on 21-22 March, the International Energy Agency (IEA) and UNFCCC joined forces on the implementation of COP 28 outcomes while focusing on three key areas – tracking and reporting on the energy-related outcomes of the first Global Stocktake at COP 28; building consensus on actions to deliver 1.5 °C-aligned energy transitions; and supporting the next round of NDCs.

     In a Speech at Chatham House, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell highlighted the urgency to address climate change stating, “We have two years to save the world.” He underlined the need to take a quantum leap in climate finance and urged bold new national climate plans by all nations that protect people, boost jobs, and drive inclusive economic growth.

     A new UN report on Financing for Sustainable Development called for urgent steps to mobilise finance at scale to close the development financing gap, now estimated at USD 4.2 trillion annually, noting that financing challenges are at the heart of the world’s sustainable development crisis and bold actions are needed to scale up SDG investment and reform the global financial system.

     The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has launched a new World Energy Transitions Outlook brief, which provides the latest tracking data and analysis of global progress towards the COP 28 goal to triple global renewable power capacity by 2030.

     Marking the second annual International Day of Zero Waste, UNEP launched the Food Waste Index Report 2024, which provides the latest global estimates on food waste, occurring at retail and consumer-level while emphasizing that addressing food waste is an important facet of embracing zero waste and tackling the climate crisis.

Mark Your Calendar

     World Circular Economy Forum (WCEF) 2024, 15-18 April, Brussels, Belgium

     14th IRENA’s Assembly 2024, 16–18 April, Abu Dhabi, UAE

     World Future Energy Summit, 16–18 April, Abu Dhabi, UAE

     UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, 23rd Session, 15-26 April, New York, USA

     Asian Venture Philanthropy Network, 23-24 April, Abu Dhabi, UAE

     Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, 16-18 April, Abu Dhabi, UAE

     World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meetings, 19 - 21 April, Washington DC, USA

     World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings, 19-21 April, Washington, D.C., USA

     World Energy Congress, 22-25 April, Rotterdam, Netherlands

     IEA Global Summit on People-Centred Clean Energy Transitions, 26 April, Paris, France

     IEA Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa, 14 May, Paris, France

     World Water Forum, 18-25 May, Bali, Indonesia

     International Transport Forum 2024 Summit, 22-24 May, Leipzig, Germany

     60th Sessions of the UNFCCC Subsidiary Bodies, 3 -13 June, Bonn, Germany

     Daring Cities 2024 Bonn Dialogues, 3-5 June, Bonn, Germany

     Sustainable Energy for All Global Forum, 4-6 June Bridgetown, Barbados

     G7 Summit 2024, 13-15 June, Puglia, Italy

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Sent: Wednesday, April 17, 2024 12:04 PM
Subject: Vladimir, here is the latest news from the High-Level Champions!


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