Latest news with #MariaAngelicaIkeda
Yahoo
29-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Delegates reach unprecedented agreement funding international efforts to protect wilderness: 'I come out of the meeting ... optimistic'
Global delegates have finalized an ambitious plan to raise at least $200 billion annually to protect nature. The agreement, led by negotiators from the BRICS nations — Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa — represents a crucial step toward preserving biodiversity and supporting environmental efforts worldwide. The deal is designed to fund efforts to halt and reverse the loss of wildlife and natural ecosystems. It builds on the landmark Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework established in 2022, which set out various environmental targets. Delegates also agreed on technical rules for monitoring progress toward these targets and committed to publishing national reports of their plans ahead of the 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. COP16 President Colombian Environment Minister Susana Muhamad hailed the agreement as a win for multilateralism and for nature. "From Cali to Rome, we have sent a light of hope that still the common good, the environment and the protection of life and the capacity to come together for something bigger than the national interest is possible," she said. Another key part of the agreement involves determining whether a new biodiversity fund is needed or an existing fund, such as the one run by the Global Environment Facility, is good enough. The need for action has never been clearer. Data from the World Wide Fund For Nature's 2024 Living Planet Report revealed that the average size of wildlife populations has dropped by 73% since 1970. With the agreement in place, negotiators have expressed optimism. Maria Angelica Ikeda of Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs highlighted how compromise played a role in achieving a positive result, especially for developing nations. "Everyone with the spirit of compromise made concessions, and in general for developing countries the result was very positive," she said. "I come out of the meeting happy and optimistic," she added. While there are challenges ahead, with concerns about cuts to international aid from major funders, including the U.S., this agreement marks an important step in ensuring that vital biodiversity projects receive the financial support they need. With continued collaboration, this plan hopes to empower countries to protect nature, benefiting people and the environment for years to come. Which of these environmental causes would you be most interested in supporting with a financial donation? Promoting clean energy Protecting clean air Advancing forest conservation Fighting climate change Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Japan Times
10-03-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
BRICS' climate leadership aims hang on healing deep divides
LONDON – Ambitions by the BRICS group to take on a greater climate leadership role, building on the success of last month's United Nations nature talks, depend on the countries overcoming fractious politics and entrenched disagreements over money. As the United States has withdrawn from global efforts to combat climate change and, more generally, shifted its focus to promoting domestic interests, the countries known collectively as BRICS — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — are well-placed to influence the outcomes of high-profile meetings this year. They established their credentials by proposing a draft text that ensured agreement at the COP16 talks in February in Rome, a dozen sources said, potentially unlocking billions of dollars to help halt the destruction of ecosystems. "Now BRICS has been able to come together in this fashion, (it) will influence our discussions in other platforms going forward," Narend Singh, South Africa's deputy minister of forestry, fisheries and the environment, said. South Africa is boosting its profile as holder of the Group of 20 presidency this year, while another BRICS member, Brazil, prepares to host COP30 climate talks in November. "BRICS can fill a space that needs to be filled at this moment in the multilateral negotiations," Brazil's chief negotiator at COP16, Maria Angelica Ikeda, said. Colombia's Susana Muhamad, president of the COP16 nature talks, said the BRICS countries were positioning to be "bridge builders." "They are trying to create this balance to represent the Global South in front of the far-right governments that are emerging in the U.S., Italy and Argentina," she said. "I understand there's a lot of countries wanting to join BRICS, because it's a way, if you have to confront something like the U.S., you are not alone." A British official present at the talks, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said other countries needed to consider what the BRICS' more muscular approach meant for global institutions. Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva attends the first meeting of BRICS Sherpas, or chief negotiators, at the Itamaraty Palace, in Brasilia, Brazil, on Feb. 26. | REUTERS But if BRICS' is to help fill the vacuum left by the United States under President Donald Trump, it has to address internal divisions over politics and finance. The group's refusal to assume the official financial obligations of donor countries could prove a stumbling block, Timo Leiter, a distinguished policy fellow at the London School of Economics, said. So far the middle-income BRICS have resisted demands from cash-strapped developed countries that they should share financial liability, complicating the quest for compromise at U.N. negotiations on climate funding and upcoming talks on development finance in Seville, Spain. Of the $25.8 billion in biodiversity-related financing in 2022, nearly three-quarters came from five sources: European Union institutions, France, Germany, Japan and the United States, data from the OECD showed. Diverging national interests among the BRICS, with Russia keen to maintain its sale of fossil fuels, while Brazil presses countries to decarbonize faster at COP30, may also prove sticking points. "They (the BRICS) are drastically different in terms of development stage and emissions trajectory," said Li Shuo, director of China Climate at Asia Society. "What ties them together is the geopolitical aspiration which leads to the question of can they agree to put forward an affirmative agenda." A test of the group's solidarity could be at a meeting in Bonn in June where countries begin to set out their COP30 negotiating positions, analysts said. The Financing for Development conference in Seville in June could also prove pivotal, with ministers set to discuss global sustainability goals and ongoing reform of the international financial system. "This will be the perfect entry point for BRICS to advance their aim of changing the global order and having a stronger say in the global financial system," Leiter said. "The new U.S. position is almost a gift." Shorter-term, the BRICS are likely to renew demands for more say in the running of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which disburses much of the world's biodiversity finance. GEF reform is a focus as richer countries cut development spending while demanding nature-rich countries do more to protect ecosystems such as the Amazon. "It's a problem that instead of having more money directed to nature and to biodiversity, we have countries updating their nuclear weapons, or buying more armaments," said Brazil's Ikeda. "At the same time, they're demanding from us, the mega-diverse countries more and more obligations."
Zawya
10-03-2025
- Business
- Zawya
BRICS' climate leadership aims hang on healing deep divides
LONDON - Ambitions by the BRICS group to take on a greater climate leadership role, building on success last month at United Nations nature talks, depend on the countries overcoming fractious politics and entrenched disagreements over money. As the United States has withdrawn from global efforts to combat climate change and, more generally, shifted its focus to promoting domestic interests, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - known collectively as the BRICS - are well-placed to influence the outcomes of high-profile meetings this year. They established their credentials by proposing a draft text that ensured agreement at the COP16 talks in February in Rome, a dozen sources told Reuters, potentially unlocking billions of dollars to help halt the destruction of ecosystems. "Now BRICS has been able to come together in this fashion, (it) will influence our discussions in other platforms going forward," Narend Singh, deputy minister of forestry, fisheries and the environment, for South Africa said. South Africa is boosting its profile as holder of the G20 presidency this year, while another BRICS member Brazil prepares to host COP30 climate talks in November. "BRICS can fill a space that needs to be filled at this moment in the multilateral negotiations," Brazil's chief negotiator at COP16, Maria Angelica Ikeda, said. Colombia's Susana Muhamad, president of the COP16 nature talks, said the BRICS countries were positioning to be "bridge builders". "They are trying to create this balance to represent the Global South in front of the far-right governments that are emerging in the U.S., Italy and Argentina," she said. "I understand there's a lot of countries wanting to join BRICS, because it's a way, if you have to confront something like the U.S., you are not alone." A British official present at the talks, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said other countries needed to consider what the BRICS' more muscular approach meant for global institutions. DISPARATE GROUP But if BRICS' is to help fill the vacuum left by the United States under President Donald Trump, it has to address internal divisions over politics and finance. The group's refusal to assume the official financial obligations of donor countries could prove a stumbling block, Timo Leiter, a distinguished policy fellow at the London School of Economics, said. So far the middle-income BRICS have resisted demands from cash-strapped developed countries that they should share financial liability, complicating the quest for compromise at U.N. negotiations on climate funding and upcoming talks on development finance in Seville, Spain. Of the $25.8 billion in biodiversity-related financing in 2022, nearly three-quarters came from five sources: European Union institutions, France, Germany, Japan and the United States, data from the OECD showed. Diverging national interests among the BRICS, with Russia keen to maintain its sales of fossil fuels, while Brazil presses countries to decarbonise faster at COP30, may also prove sticking points. "They (the BRICS) are drastically different in terms of development stage and emissions trajectory," said Li Shuo, director of China Climate at Asia Society. "What ties them together is the geopolitical aspiration which leads to the question of can they agree to put forward an affirmative agenda." A test of the group's solidarity could be at a meeting in Bonn in June where countries begin to set out their COP30 negotiating positions, analysts said. The Financing for Development conference in Seville in June could also prove pivotal, with ministers set to discuss global sustainability goals and ongoing reform of the international financial system. "This will be the perfect entry point for BRICS to advance their aim of changing the global order and having a stronger say in the global financial system," Leiter said. "The new U.S. position is almost a gift." Shorter-term, the BRICS are likely to renew demands for more say in the running of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which disburses much of the world's biodiversity finance. GEF reform is a focus as richer countries cut development spending while demanding nature-rich countries do more to protect ecosystems such as the Amazon. "It's a problem that instead of having more money directed to nature and to biodiversity, we have countries updating their nuclear weapons, or buying more armaments," said Brazil's Ikeda. "At the same time, they're demanding from us, the mega-diverse countries more and more obligations." (Editing by Simon Jessop and Barbara Lewis)
Reuters
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
BRICS' climate leadership aims hang on healing deep divides
Summary Group took lead role in forging deal at COP16 talks As US withdraws, group keen to push own agenda Will face hurdles as seeks more money and greater say LONDON, March 10 (Reuters) - Ambitions by the BRICS group to take on a greater climate leadership role, building on success last month at United Nations nature talks, depend on the countries overcoming fractious politics and entrenched disagreements over money. As the United States has withdrawn from global efforts to combat climate change and, more generally, shifted its focus to promoting domestic interests, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - known collectively as the BRICS - are well-placed to influence the outcomes of high-profile meetings this year. They established their credentials by proposing a draft text that ensured agreement at the COP16 talks in February in Rome, a dozen sources told Reuters, potentially unlocking billions of dollars to help halt the destruction of ecosystems. "Now BRICS has been able to come together in this fashion, (it) will influence our discussions in other platforms going forward," Narend Singh, deputy minister of forestry, fisheries and the environment, for South Africa said. South Africa is boosting its profile as holder of the G20 presidency this year, while another BRICS member Brazil prepares to host COP30 climate talks in November. "BRICS can fill a space that needs to be filled at this moment in the multilateral negotiations," Brazil's chief negotiator at COP16, Maria Angelica Ikeda, said. Colombia's Susana Muhamad, president of the COP16 nature talks, said the BRICS countries were positioning to be "bridge builders". "They are trying to create this balance to represent the Global South in front of the far-right governments that are emerging in the U.S., Italy and Argentina," she said. "I understand there's a lot of countries wanting to join BRICS, because it's a way, if you have to confront something like the U.S., you are not alone." A British official present at the talks, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said other countries needed to consider what the BRICS' more muscular approach meant for global institutions. DISPARATE GROUP But if BRICS' is to help fill the vacuum left by the United States under President Donald Trump, it has to address internal divisions over politics and finance. The group's refusal to assume the official financial obligations of donor countries could prove a stumbling block, Timo Leiter, a distinguished policy fellow at the London School of Economics, said. So far the middle-income BRICS have resisted demands from cash-strapped developed countries that they should share financial liability, complicating the quest for compromise at U.N. negotiations on climate funding and upcoming talks on development finance in Seville, Spain. Of the $25.8 billion in biodiversity-related financing in 2022, nearly three-quarters came from five sources: European Union institutions, France, Germany, Japan and the United States, data from the OECD showed. Diverging national interests among the BRICS, with Russia keen to maintain its sales of fossil fuels, while Brazil presses countries to decarbonise faster at COP30, may also prove sticking points. "They (the BRICS) are drastically different in terms of development stage and emissions trajectory," said Li Shuo, director of China Climate at Asia Society. "What ties them together is the geopolitical aspiration which leads to the question of can they agree to put forward an affirmative agenda." A test of the group's solidarity could be at a meeting in Bonn in June where countries begin to set out their COP30 negotiating positions, analysts said. The Financing for Development conference in Seville in June could also prove pivotal, with ministers set to discuss global sustainability goals and ongoing reform of the international financial system. "This will be the perfect entry point for BRICS to advance their aim of changing the global order and having a stronger say in the global financial system," Leiter said. "The new U.S. position is almost a gift." Shorter-term, the BRICS are likely to renew demands for more say in the running of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which disburses much of the world's biodiversity finance. GEF reform is a focus as richer countries cut development spending while demanding nature-rich countries do more to protect ecosystems such as the Amazon. "It's a problem that instead of having more money directed to nature and to biodiversity, we have countries updating their nuclear weapons, or buying more armaments," said Brazil's Ikeda. "At the same time, they're demanding from us, the mega-diverse countries more and more obligations." Make sense of the latest ESG trends affecting companies and governments with the Reuters Sustainable Switch newsletter. Sign up here.
