The UN General Assembly has designated 2022 the International Year of Sustainable Mountain Development. Drinking water, sanitation, and sustainable modern energy are among the basic services that are limited in many mountain regions.

How can we increase awareness of the importance of conserving and sustainably using mountain ecosystems?

A global agreement on Biodiversity cannot wait anymore.

The biggest biodiversity summit in a decade, Cop15 in Kunming, China, where world leaders were expected to strike a deal to halt and reverse the destruction of ecosystems by reaching a Paris-style agreement for nature was postponed until 2021 and now is likely to be delayed a fourth time as a result of the Omicron variant.

In the meantime, during the pandemic, the destruction of the world’s forests increased sharply. Dangerous levels of greenhouse gases continue to accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere as humans consume beyond planetary boundaries while the world’s governments have missed every single target they have set for themselves on averting the destruction of Nature.

“We’ll get it done. Come hell, high water … or Covid. When and how, I don’t know,” says Basile van Havre, co-chair of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) working group responsible for crafting the Cop15 agreement.

Indigenous communities face severe consequences of climate change. This study, conducted over a span of seven years, quantifies the effects of land dispossession on extreme climate change events.

The database catalogues and examines forced migration in the United States, and how it has influenced environmental processes over time. The research suggests that forced migration lead to conditions in which tribal lands experience increased exposure to climate change risks and hazards and diminished economic value.

Recent study details the use of satellite technology to estimate how fires change and destabilize forestry landscapes. Fires in Brazil's Amazon continue to threaten the ecological and ethnological makings of the carbon sink.

Among the most significant announcements made at COP26 was the Glasgow Leaders' Declaration on Forests and Land Use, in which 137 countries committed to collectively end forest loss and land degradation by 2030.

Forest commitments were made to help reduce emissions, and countries are looking toward collaborative methods of restoration and protection for a resilient future.

Two weeks after world leaders signed a plan at Cop26 to reverse deforestation at Cop26, the EU executive on Wednesday outlined a draft law requiring companies to prove that agricultural commodities destined for the bloc’s 450 million consumers were not linked to deforestation.

Indeed, the proposal would give a strong signal to major supermarkets and retailers: one of the largest economies in the world simply won’t accept agricultural products linked to deforestation.

However, as we legislate import bans, we must also keep in mind the social and economic wellbeing implications for the people sustained by these commodities.

Do you know what are the 5 ecosystems where nature-based solutions can deliver the highest benefits?

1. Forests --> where the most is at stake
2. Peatlands --> Earth’s most potent carbon stores
3. Farmlands --> where carbon feeds humanity
4. Oceans and coasts --> the many benefits of mangroves
5. Cities --> the urban frontier of climate change

Check this article to find out more!

WEBINAR: Inclusive forest-positive agriculture through integrated landscape approaches: the role of government (8 September 2021, 2pm CEST).

This webinar is the first of a series of online events organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan (MAFF) on “Halting deforestation: approaches and tools for forest-positive commodity value chains.”

Translation will be available in English, French and Spanish.

Photo by Rémi Bertogliati on Unsplash

Near or far, the role of forests in securing clean water for residents and the agricultural lands that cities rely on is equally crucial.

Not only is clean, safe, and affordable water essential to human health and well-being, the pandemic reminds us of how critical clean water is to health and hygiene. And yet, the world is on the precipice of a historic global water crisis.

The situation is dire, but one asset is already at our fingertips. Forest can alter the movement, quality, and availability of water. With the majority of the planet’s population inhabiting cities, the connection between cities, water, and forests works at three levels: inner forests, nearby forests, and faraway forests. Here’s how each one protects water in cities, no matter how far away.

In the process of creating various conservation and development initiatives in the Waorani Territory, in the Amazon Basin, women and communities have provided a great contribution, thanks to their constant involvement and interest. This made it possible to create local capacities.