At Cop28 in Dubai last November, I sat down for nearly an hour with Gustavo Petro, Colombia’s president, who explained that his country’s vast biodiversity will be at the centre of their economy once it has transitioned away from fossil fuels.
“Biodiversity, in my opinion, is the source of our new wealth and Colombia could attain it. When we put in our advertising that people should visit Colombia, the country of beauty, we’re not lying. No doubt every Colombian knows that he or she is living in one of the most beautiful countries in the world,” he said.
Although the plan remains light on detail, Petro is not alone in seeking to change his country’s economic priorities. Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has put at lot of emphasis on the new “bioeconomy”, which will reward countries for protecting nature and is on the agenda for world leaders at the G20 which is being chaired by Brazil.
The message is clear: Brazil and Colombia will protect their forests – which are vital to meeting global climate and biodiversity targets – but they need an economic system to support them.
Between now and Cop30 in the Brazilian Amazon, governments are tasked with developing their next nationally determined contributions toward the Paris agreement, which must be calibrated towards meeting the 1.5C global heating target, consider international agreements on biodiversity and aim to end global deforestation this decade. All this will require money.
In Dubai, Lula proposed a global fund for rainforests that will safeguard them in perpetuity. Tasso Azevedo, a forest expert and adviser to the Brazilian president, said countries could be paid $30 a year for every hectare of forest they kept intact, while being penalised for every hectare lost.
“Imagine you have a country that has 1,000 hectares of forest. If you maintain the forest, you will get $30,000, but if you clear cut 10 hectares, you get nothing,” he told a side event at the summit.
In order to qualify for the Tropical Forests Forever fund, countries would have to meet three conditions: keep deforestation below 0.5% a year; have forest loss trending downwards or keep it below 0.1%; and give the majority of funds to the people looking after the trees. The fund could be financed by putting a charge on fossil fuel sales, Azevedo said.
The good news is not just isolated to the Amazon. In recent years, Indonesia and Malaysia – both home to large areas of rainforest – have recorded large and sustained falls in forest loss following government action, including restrictions on the palm oil industry. They, too, would like a financial reward.
The Democratic Republic of Congo, which has the largest area of the Congo Basin rainforest, second only in size to the Amazon, is a cause for concern. It is overshadowed by its South American sister, lacking in scientific research and political interest, yet still absolutely crucial. Groups such as the Congo Basin Science Initiative, akin to those set up to protect the Amazon, were launched last year to bridge the gap amid intense mining and fossil fuel extractive interest in the rainforests which threaten its future.
The picture can change again quickly and the recent progress is fragile. But there is a change in 2024 to finally break the cycle.
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