Small successes and hoping for more
Small successes and hoping for more
No karaoke experience
Other things I could tell you about are:
1. Korean Culture (interesting)
2. Korean Hot Pot (delicious)
3. Politics in climate negotiations and the Civil Society group at the Board Meeting preparing interventions.
4. Contradictions: South-Korea’s environmental policy versus the fact that South-Korea is the home of the Green Climate Fund (South-Korea relies on many nuclear power plants, and the GCF is located at a gigantic land reclamation site – bye bye breeding ground for thousands of migratory bird species – and so forth)
5. Megacities and an itchy nose due to air pollution.
Unfortunately, one of things I cannot tell you about is karaoke. Due to the fast aging-process, I could not stay awake at night to join Board Members, GCF secretariat folks, my new friends of the bank-sector and GCF observers, for a karaoke experience.
The real stuff
I could tell you about the discussions and the exact outcome of the decisions taken at this board meeting. Again, the Business Model Framework was on the Agenda, but not only its procedures were discussed like last time in Berlin. Instead, they talked about the real stuff. The decisions on the topics the Both ENDS team focuses on – enhanced direct access, country ownership, multi-stakeholder participation – have been quite positive. Although we had hoped to see more concrete commitment to these principles in the decisions, nothing is really off the table yet: most things have just been postponed to the next board meetings*.
Advice on a Private Sector Facility
What I would really like to tell you about are the discussions about the Private Sector Facility (PSF). We all feared that this PSF would become a separate governance body of the Fund, but there was no support for this in the Board. The decision was made however that an Advisory Board (AB) for this PSF was to be created, consisting of 4 Board Members and 8 private sector representatives from both developed and developing countries. Our civil society-hearts started to sink: no scientists, no independent experts, or no civil society representatives needed?
‘You need people that think slightly different’
Then, all of a sudden, Mr. Tosi Mpanu Mpanu, the Congolese Board Member, said that according to him, CSO-representatives would be needed in this AB. I’d like to think that he brought this up because of all our lobby efforts before and during the meeting, but of course I can’t be sure. The usual suspects (Board Members of the developed countries) started opposing to his suggestion, but then Mr. Dipak Dasgupta, the Indian Board member spoke legendary words citing Adam Smith, one of the founders of modern economy: “When you put people together that think alike, they will conduct extreme views. So you need people that think slightly different”.
Out of balance, but still flying high
Finally the decision was made that the Advisory Board of the PSF apart from the members already agreed on, will consist of up to TWO CIVIL SOCIETY representatives. Of course, this is still slightly out of balance and results will depend very much on what kind of CSO representatives will be selected. Nevertheless, I’m flying home while writing this and believe me, I’m flying high!
* For example, at the first meeting in 2014, the GCF Board will consider “additional modalities that further enhance direct access, including through funding entities with a view to enhancing country ownership of projects and programs." and “best-practice options for country coordination and multi-stakeholder engagement, including in the context of the development of funding proposals.” That sounds promising
Leonie Wezendonk works for Both ENDS, the Netherlands
Read more about this subject
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Event / 23 March 2023, 13:15 - 14:30
Making finance for gender just water and climate solutions a reality!
The UN Water Conference is an important event that brings together stakeholders from around the world to discuss water and climate solutions. This year, GAGGA is organizing a side event during the conference that you won't want to miss!
On Thursday March 23rd, from 1.15 -2.30 pm, GAGGA will present their commitment to support, finance, and promote locally rooted, gender just climate and water solutions within the Water Action Agenda. This event will inspire other stakeholders to join in their commitment, while presenting inspiring examples of such solutions presented by local women from Nepal, Kenya, Paraguay, Mexico, and Nigeria.
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Event / 23 March 2023, 09:00 - 11:00
Towards just water governance in Colombia; a dialogue on the Transformative Water Pact
Online side event at the UN Water conference in New York
This event will present The Transformative Water Pact (TWP), an innovative framework for water governance that has been developed by environmental justice experts from around the world. The TWP will serve as a starting point for dialogue between representatives of the government of Colombia, academia, regional and international NGOs in relation to Colombia's current ambitions in multi-scalar water governance.
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Publication / 21 March 2023
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News / 21 March 2023
Agua es vida: Both ENDS and water governance
Water is literally life, the lifeblood of ecosystems, of nature, of humans. However, in many places the distribution and use of water is unjust and unsustainable. Water management is generally focused on short-term economic interests, on maximizing the profit of a well-connected few at the expense of people and nature. This dominant view of water and water management has its origins in the European industrial revolution, which became the global norm through colonialism and globalization. But according to Melvin van der Veen and Murtah Shannon, water experts at Both ENDS, this view will have to give way to equitable, sustainable and inclusive water management. Both ENDS cooperates with and supports communities and organisations worldwide who are working to this end.
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Press release / 20 March 2023
A Transformative Water Pact : A radical response to the global water governance crisis
Academics and civil society representatives from around the world came together to articulate an alternative vision and framework for water governance, in the run-up to the UN Water Conference 2023 in New York. The Transformative Water Pact was developed in response to the continued exploitation of nature, neglect of human rights and the extreme power-imbalances that characterize contemporary water governance throughout the world. It details an alternative vision of water governance based on the tenets of environmental justice, equality and care.
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Publication / 15 March 2023
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Publication / 15 March 2023
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Publication / 9 March 2023
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Press release / 9 March 2023
Dutch Pension funds do not vote in line with climate ambitions
Most Dutch pension funds and their asset managers do not vote consistently in favour of climate resolutions at the oil and gas companies and banks in which they invest. That is the conclusion of a report published today by Both ENDS and Groen Pensioen. Eleven of the twelve* Dutch pension funds studied have made public statements and pledges about adapting their policies in line with the Paris Climate Agreement. But their voting behaviour does not sufficiently correspond with these pledges. Only pension fund PME votes for 100% in line with its own climate promises.
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Publication / 9 March 2023
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Event / 5 March 2023, 13:00
Feminist March
On Sunday March 5 Both ENDS will be joining the Feminist March (called Women's March before). It starts at 1 PM at De Dam in Amsterdam.
With our block "Feminists for Climate Justice" we'll gather in front of Madame Tussauds.
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News / 4 March 2023
Op-ed: We can’t leave tackling the climate crisis to men
Make women and gender equality a priority in climate policy, wrote Rebecca Heuvelmans (Women Engage for a Common Future), Marjon Melissen (ActionAid), Esin Erdogan (Simavi), Annelieke Douma (Both Ends) and Eva Lia Colombo (Wo=men Dutch Gender Platform) in Dutch newspaper Trouw. Sunday March 5, they'll join the Feminist March in Amsterdam.
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Event / 2 March 2023, 14:00 - 15:30
Inclusive finance for land governance: A conversation with donors
Both ENDS and the Land Portal Foundation invite you to the fourth webinar in the Whose Land? Inclusive Pathways to Land Governance series. This fourth Whose Land? webinar will focus on the question: How can donors fund land governance initiatives through an inclusive process?
More information about this event is available on Landportal.org
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Letter / 28 February 2023
175 CSOs call on world leaders to end OECD export finance for oil and gas
This joint position launched by 175 civil society organisations from 45 countries calls on world leaders to end OECD export finance for oil and gas, and explains how it can be done.
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News / 20 February 2023
Almost 60 organisations send a letter about fossil export support to Dutch Parliament
Today, a letter, undersigned by almost 60 organisations from countries that face the consequences of fossil fuel projects or stand in solidarity, has been sent to the Dutch Members of Parliament. This Thursday, a debate about the export credit facility and the policies around it, will take place in the Dutch Parliament. The coalition calls upon Dutch politicians and policy makers to stand up against any form of export support for fossil fuel projects that are to be executed by Dutch companies abroad, expecially in the global South.
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Letter / 20 February 2023
Letter of international CSO's to Dutch Parliament: close gaps in Dutch policy on limiting public finance to fossil fuels
In October 2022, the Dutch government published a policy to implement the COP26 statement in which it promised to stop public finance for fossil fuel projects abroad by the end of 2022 . The proposed policy, unfortunately, has quite some 'loopholes' that make it possible for the Dutch government to keep supporting large fossil projects abroad for at least another year. These projects often run for years and will have a negative impact on the countries where they take place for decades to come.
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News / 6 February 2023
Op-ed: Dutch construction project in the Philippines shows that voluntary corporate social responsibility doesn’t work
This op-ed was published in Dutch newspaper Trouw on the 3rd of February this year
Abuses committed during the construction of an airport in the Philippines show the urgent need for legislation on corporate social responsibility here in the Netherlands, say Murtah Shannon of Both ENDS and Maartje Hilterman of IUCN NL on behalf of a coalition of Dutch and Philippine organisations.
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News / 5 February 2023
Using Philanthropy, Advocacy and More to Shift Power
(This interview was published on January 18th in Inside Philantrophy)
Most people in philanthropy don't enter the sector because they have dreams of working in a financial institution. But that's exactly what they're doing. The philanthropic sector as we know it today was deliberately designed by the robber barons of the early 19th century as a response to extreme wealth inequality they created through exploitative labor practices in the oil, steel and shipping industries. Whether to genuinely make amends for the harms they created or to engage in reputation washing, the industrialists cornered the market on philanthropy, guarding against legal challenges to its tax shelter functionality and curtailing regulatory legislation that could induce democratic decision-making. Today, the value of philanthropy stands at about $2.3 trillion, which is 3% of the global economy.
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News / 10 January 2023
In Memoriam: Irene Dankelman
With pain in our hearts we say farewell to Irene Dankelman. She was pioneer in the field of gender and environment and one of the founders of Both ENDS.
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Video / 31 December 2022
Let's work together towards a green, just and healthy 2023!
At Both ENDS, we were happy to finally be able to meet many of our partners again in 2022. Although digital meetings are here to stay, they will never beat a live encounter every once in a while where we get to know each other's contexts, learn from each other and motivate and inspire one another.
But be it live or online, together we will work towards a green, just and healthy 2023!