IUCN Statement | 19 Nov, 2022

IUCN expresses concern over slow progress at COP27 while welcoming recognition of Nature-based Solutions

As COP27 closed today, IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, expressed its concern over the slow progress in tackling the climate crisis. At the same time, IUCN welcomed the clear recognition of the key role that Nature-based Solutions can play in addressing climate change, while stressing that they must not replace rapid and deep emission cuts to ‘keep 1.5 alive’.

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Photo: UNFCCC / Egypt

Climate change is increasingly impacting people and nature, with vulnerable communities most affected. This underscores that, in addition to ambitious mitigation and adaptation efforts, there is now an urgent need to address climate-related loss and damage. IUCN welcomes the establishment of a new fund for responding to loss and damage and encourages Parties to rapidly and effectively ensure its deployment.

The clear recognition of Nature-based Solutions at COP27 provides Parties with a robust framework for effectively harnessing nature’s role in addressing climate adaptation and mitigation. It will also enable Parties to exercise greater oversight in the implementation of these important solutions, and avoid their misuse.

Momentum behind Nature-based Solutions was further boosted by the ENACT partnership, which Egypt and Germany launched at COP27 together with IUCN. This initiative will drive the implementation of integrated, well-coordinated Nature-based Solutions on a global scale, and track progress via an authoritative annual report delivered at subsequent climate COPs. We applaud the leadership of the Egyptian Presidency in bringing this initiative to life.

The COP also saw the launch of the Mangrove Breakthrough, co-led by IUCN in collaboration with the UN High Level Climate Champions, which sets out to secure 15 million hectares of mangroves globally by 2030. Furthermore, IUCN and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) initiated a new area of work to deploy Nature-based Solutions to address humanitarian challenges.

By cementing the crucial role of nature in collective efforts to address climate change, COP27 sends a powerful message of support to the UN biodiversity conference, CBD COP15, which will open in Montreal next month. The biodiversity and climate crises are inextricably linked, as recognised in the COP decision, and Nature-based Solutions offer a concrete means of effectively addressing both these crises concurrently.