Both ENDS
In September this year the UN held its annual meetings in New York. The Dutch government was well represented: with the Prime Minister, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister for Development Aid all attending. Both ENDS was also in New York to call for the inclusion of the right to water and sanitation in the Millennium Development Goals. We spoke with the Dutch Prime Minister, attended high-level meetings, and published an opinion article.
Altough you might not notice right away, a bitter scent sticks to most flower bouquets. The cultivation of flowers mostly happens in developing countries where it is often associated with poor working conditions, excessive water consumption and pollution. Both ENDS is therefore very pleased about the announced cooperation between sustainability label Fair Flowers Fair Plants (FFP) and the Milieu Programma Sierteelt (MPS) foundation. Because of this cooperation, consumers will be able to consciously choose for a fair, well-scented bouquet of flowers at an ever growing number of retailers.
6 civil society organizations, including Both ENDS have submitted a gender comment on the newly proposed EIB Environmental and Social Framework. The EIB Environmental and Social Standards has to be updated to ensure that due attention to gender specific impacts, risks and related mitigation strategies is integrated in the policy and each standard, as well the assessment needs to specifically address the needs and problems of all genders. A lot of improvements can be made in the integration of gender aspects in policy and standards, in order to prevent violation of the rights of women and girls during project implementation, and tools (widely used by other organisations) and or commitments for their development should be included (inclusive consultations, Gender assessments and analyses, gender impact assessment, Legal Assessment Tool (LAT) for gender-equitable land tenure, gender responsive tools for prevention of violence.
THE HAGUE/CABO DELGADO, December 1, 2025 - Today, Minister of Finance Eelco Heinen announced that TotalEnergies is withdrawing from a $640 million Dutch export credit insurance policy for a controversial gas project in Mozambique. Although the Dutch government has been avoiding this decision for years, this move has finally ended part of the Dutch involvement in this disastrous project.
This year Both ENDS invites partners worldwide to collaborate on our new strategy. We remain committed to strengthen and connect inspiring initiatives that we encounter every day with our partners and in our projects.
More than six months after the Dutch elections took place, a long period of debates, negotiations and incertainty has finally come to an end. The new coalition of center-rightwing parties was sworn in last Thursday the 26th of October. Having Sigrid Kaag of the liberal-democratic party D66 as the new Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation in the third Rutte government (Rutte III), we can look forward to where the opportunities lie in the new coalition’s plans to make the world fairer and more sustainable. The Coalition Agreement, which tries to build a bridge between the political centre and the centre-right, is a smart piece of work in terms of reaching compromises. In the current international climate of societies progressively growing apart, that is a striking achievement.
