Roots Newsletter: July 2024
Dear friends, members, allies and comrades, As we stride into the second half of the year, take a moment to reflect on the work of the past few months in our enduring mission to advocate for the conservation and restoration of forest ecosystems through defending and promoting respect for the rights, territories, traditional knowledge and sustainable livelihoods of the Indigenous Peoples, local communities and women that co-exist with them. In May, GFC welcomed Mary Louise Malig as the coalition’s new Policy Director. Mary Lou has been connected to the Global Forest Coalition for many years and has decades of experience in forestry policy and advocacy. Under this new stewardship, GFC and its members maintain our pursuit of rights and justice for communities, women, and environmental defenders, who continue to face human rights abuses. We’ve also been busy engaging with major international policy forums, including the UNFCCC, where GFC and members were busy at the SB60 conference in Bonn in June, as well as engaging with the Convention on Biological Diversity at the SBI4 in Nairobi in May. At both events, GFC and its members continued to push for the inclusion and voices of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, women and other rightsholders whose voices remain unheard from discussions and policy decisions. We were also present at the XI FOSPA (Pan-Amazon Social Forum) conference and the People's Mobilization for Earth and Climate, in Bolivia in June, where we held important conversations with activists and leaders from Indigenous, Afro-descendant and other land-based communities on coalition building and strategising in defence of nature and the people of the Amazon rainforest.
GFC staff and members take part in a protest action at the COP-SBI4 meeting at the UNOP building in Nairobi, Kenya, denouncing the limited budget for the KM-CBD framework and excessive funding of harmful activities.
CBD SBI4 Nairobi
ECO Issue Article: Asymmetries in Resource Mobilization: Direct Access for Frontline Communities Still Overlooked CBD SBI 4 Side event: Will biodiversity offsets and credits help us achieve the global biodiversity targets? CBD SBI 4 Side event: Mainstreaming, resource mobilization and policy coherence for implementationSB60 Bonn
The Global Forest Coalition (GFC) and member organisations were in Bonn from June 3-13 where once again, we were pushing for an end to false climate solutions and a focus on real solutions. GFC took part in several press conferences and side events and held side meetings with GFC members and allies to strategize and share information on key issues. Press Conference: REDD+ Alert: Will the UN fold REDD+ into the Article 6 global offset scheme? Press Conference: True International Cooperation: Moving Beyond Carbon Markets Press Conference: Finance and the Land Sector in the UNFCCC: What are the Problems and What Needs to Change?Research and Reports
Annual Report: GFC Annual Report 2023 Case Study: GALAXIAS UNICAM: Agroecological shelters for positive living Briefing paper: Who Really Benefits? How REDD+ Fails Forests and Those Who Protect Them White Paper: The Just Transition from Industrial Animal Production to equitable, humane and sustainable food systemsMedia and Public Advocacy
Joint open letter: Halt Imports of Avocados from Mexico that Cause Deforestation Joint open letter and citizen petition: More than 150.000 citizens and 280 organizations call on World Bank to Stop Financing Factory Farming Webpost and Video: International Mother Earth Day 2024: An Ode to Mother Earth Media Mention: GFC report cited in Uganda carbon offsetting investigation Media Mention: GFC points finger at South Korea for taking advantage of climate accounting loophole to expand biomass industry Article: A River's Rights: Indigenous Kukama Women Lead the Way with Landmark Legal Victory Article: ¿A quién le sirve hablar “carbonés”? Joint Statement: We condemn the violations of the right to protest and the attacks against human rights and water defenders in the Libres-Oriental Basin who were protesting against Carroll FarmsEngagement
UNCBD Women’s Caucus Meeting with members of Colombia’s Delegation towards CBD COP 16 CBD Alliance Action on Resource Mobilization - “Where is the money going?” UNCBD Women’s Caucus Policy Recommendations on Resource Mobilization Informal Dialogue on a new programme of work and institutional arrangements on Article 8(j) and other provisions of the Convention related to Indigenous peoples and local communitiesWebinars and Side Events
Webinar: Biodiversity Offsets and Credits: False solutions to a false problem Webinar: How Can You Stop Financing Factory Farming? Industrial Livestock Campaigning 101 UNCBD Women’s Caucus side event: Enhancing Gender Responsiveness in National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs)Meetings, Workshops, and Training
Workshop with Gender Technical Partners of the Green Livelihood Alliance (GLA) programme, in partnership with Women Engage for a Common Future (WECF) - Nairobi, KenyaThank you for reading this issue of Roots and for your important work and collective solidarity. We hope you’ll stay connected with GFC’s campaigns and network of members! In Solidarity, The GFC Team
