This event will showcase the vital need to advance agroecology as a people, nature and livelihood-centred approach towards climate adaptation and mitigation. It will make the case for agroecology and climate action based on researched and carefully selected case studies on agroecology in Africa and how it is and can continue contributing to adaptation and mitigation of the impacts of climate change.
Following the Raw Material Week in November 2023 and the provisional agreement on the Critical Raw Material Regulation, Wetlands International Europe together with Both ENDS and the EU Raw Materials Coalition have organised a session seeking an open discussion on the environmental and human rights impacts of raw materials extraction, in and around vulnerable areas.
Although the Panamanian government decided to suspend the construction of the Barro Blanco dam in February of this year, it now appears that construction will be resumed after all. This has been announced by the government on Monday May 4th. The contract with the original developer, Genisa, will most probably be terminated, and other project developers will be sought. However, according to representatives of the indigenous Ngöbe Buglé community, new developers will not solve the problem: the dam will inevitably damage their territory and surroundings. Out of protest, they left the roundtable dialogue with the Panamanian government which started in February with the aim to find a solution to the problem of the controversial dam.
Even a region like the South American La Plata Basin, known for it's majestic rivers and wetlands, is struggling with drought. A group of organisations united in the Wetlands without Borders network strive to turn the tide.
At the beginning of this century, Jatropha Curcas made its name as the miracle tree. Jatropha was easy to grow in dry areas, the seeds could be used for biofuel and since Jatropha trees - like all trees and plants - absorb CO2, growing the tree would contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. In one stroke the solution to climate change, energy scarcity and underdevelopment would be within reach. Investors lined up to invest in large-scale Jatropha cultivation, especially in Africa. Ten years later, the miracle turned out to be a mirage.
Halls filled with booths, stands, professionally set up corners, wifi-spots. Big rooms where lectures, interactive sessions and workshops are held. People from all corners of the world and from different kinds of sectors (companies, government, and social organisations) are gathering here for five days. They have one thing in common: they are talking about water. The sixth World Water Forum in Marseille is about 'solutions'. For water issues, that is. Almost a billion people worldwide have to cope without clean drinking water.
Both ENDS and Oxfam Novib welcome the new SDG Loan Fund launched by FMO. The fund aims to invest more than a billion euros in loans to small and medium-sized enterprises in low- and middle-income countries, in the energy, inclusive financial services and sustainable agriculture sectors. At the same time, both organisations are concerned about the impact of money from the fund on normal people in future recipient countries.