Jack Hurd’s Post

A new generation of forest defenders are fighting for their Amazonian home. This article features a number of young Indigenous activists from South America - revealing the personal stories behind their dribve to preserve their local environment, and the role they are playing in the fight to protect the Amazon rainforest. Two sisters, Helena and Nina Gualinga have inspired a growing Indigenous youth movement in the Ecuadorian Amazon - through their involvement at international conferences and through social media. If deforestation continues at its current pace, scientific studies indicate that in less than 10 years the Amazon could reach an irreversible Tipping Point, where much of the Amazon would become a savanna with a lower capacity for storing carbon. If the Amazon is destroyed, it would not only impact local communities, but due to its role in the global climate system, the ripple effects would be felt around the world. https://lnkd.in/e6rKxjdS #IndigenousPeoples #Forests #ForestDefenders #Amazon #Ecuador #IndigenousYouth #Youth #TippingPoints #AmazonDieBack

Just announced - Deforestation rates in Colombia have fallen to the lowest rate this century. Figures from the Susana Muhamad, Minister of the Environment in Colombia, show a reduction of 38% - to the lowest rates in the millennium. This reduction occurs against a backdrop of declining losses over the past few years: 2017 - 219K ha 2020 & 2021 - 170K ha 2022 - 122K ha 2023 - 79K ha The reasons for this reduction are a complex mix of public & private sector actions ⬇️. 🌳 Government action to develop agreements with the communities living in the region. 🌳 The contribution of authorities such as the prosecutor's office, the military forces and the police that have dedicated greater resources to the persecution and prosecution of illegal deforestation. 🌳 The most favorable conditions in terms of public order and regional advances within the framework of the total peace process that the Government has promoted. 🌳 Efforts made through international cooperation programs that have a presence in the areas with the highest risk of deforestation. 🌳 Greater awareness through the private sector with large marketers and small producers through spaces such as the Zero Deforestation Agreements that Tropical Forest Alliance has been promoting. These are factors that still need to be strengthened and deepened. And challenges still exist - including land grabbing, bad agricultural practices, poorly planned infrastructure projects and illegal factors that persist. While we can take heart from these figures – and the fact that public-private sector action can reduce deforestation - there are still some figures from the first quarter of 2024 that generate some concern. https://lnkd.in/enPBm5hB #Deforestation #Colombia #TropicalForests

Deforestation in the Amazon is continuing to decline, despite a rise in forest fires. According to INPE data, in May deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon dropped to its lowest level since March 2018. Deforestation for the year to date is down 40% compared to 2023, with expectations for a significant annual decline when the “deforestation year” concludes on 31 July. However, severe weather conditions such as droughts, which are being exacerbated by global warming, means further progress is needed, and private sector investment should continue to be encouraged. https://lnkd.in/eXcEJvKA #Deforestation #Drought #Forests #Fires #Amazon #Brazil

The Soft Commodities Forum (SCF) has expanded its land-use monitoring and reporting to the entire Cerrado biome - covering over 200 million hectares. The move follows previous commitments by the SCF to monitor and report on soy cultivation, native vegetation conversion and farm-level traceability in 25 municipalities in 2019 (17.79 million hectares), and across 61 municipalities in 2021. Its scope is now expanded to the entire Cerrado biome and will also include an enhanced risk assessment methodology for classifying non-traceability soy and will report on all 61 municipalities using both the old and new methodologies to ensure transparency and comparability. These efforts align with the Agriculture Sector Roadmap to 1.5C, and strengthens the SCF’s ability to support forest-positive soy supply chains and promotes sustainable agriculture and environmental conservation in the Cerrado. https://lnkd.in/e4Fh2vCD #Cerrado #Soy #SCF #Agriculture #Conversion #Brazil

I moderated an important session at the Oslo Tropical Forest Forum last week - 'High stakes: transitioning to sustainable cattle production in Brazil'. The discussion focused on contextual factors surrounding the cattle sector in Brazil and its key challenges, while illustrating leadership examples to-date and illuminating the path forward. I want to thank the panel of interdisciplinary experts who brought these issues to life: Sec. Mauro O’de Almeida, Pará State Government; Toby Gardner, SEI and Trase; Leila Harfuch, Agroicone; José Otavio Passos, The Nature Conservancy; Fernando Sampaio, Sustainability Brazilian Beef Exporters Association (ABIEC); Alice Gargano, Mars; Maggie Charnley, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, United Kingdom; Raoni Rajão, PhD, Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, Brazil. Some key takeaways: 🌳 The Brazilian cattle sector is a key economic sector for the country – contributing almost 10% of the country’s GDP and employing millions of Brazilians. So, when we talk about a transition of the Brazilian cattle sector, the objective is to make cattle production more sustainable, with solutions that empower producers at the centre of this. 🌳 The state of Pará has taken the leadership to tackle this issue on the ground by making traceability 100% mandatory by 2026. Traceability is an important foundational layer to making the cattle sector more sustainable because it formalises the supply chain. Pará’s Integrity and Development Plan can be a model for other states to adapt based on their own characteristics and biomes. 🌳 Attracting investment for this transition is crucial to enable increased productivity, adoption of traceability and the provision of technical assistance and financing for producers. De-risking investments in the sector is key and innovative finance – such as blended finance products that combine philanthropy, impact investing, development finance and commercial capital – can come together to catalyse the change that is required. Look out for a longer article on this topic next week. #Cattle #Beef #Para #Brazil #OTFF #Deforestation

This is a good piece in the Guardian. Despite the ubiquitous use of digital technologies the demand for paper, pulp and packaging, let alone construction materials, is soaring. Then along comes newer bio-based materials and bio-plastics. The world is not really having a serious conversation about the supply of wood for our expanding economy. This will need to change, soonest. https://lnkd.in/eYXHUya8

Cattle production is the highest GHG emitting agricultural activity globally – a large part of which is caused by the clearing of land to create new pastureland. Historically, pasture expansion has been the main driver of deforestation and conversion in Brazil. Tomorrow I will be speaking at Oslo Tropical Forest Forum in a session around sustainable cattle production. 10.30-12.00 AM, WEDNESDAY JUNE 26 High stakes: Transition to sustainable cattle production During this session, we will highlight the leadership of the Brazilian state of Pará's cattle integrity plan, the commitments of meatpackers articulated in the Agriculture Sector Roadmap to 1.5C, the collective effort of the CGF Forest Positive Coalition of Action to support initiatives in cattle producing landscapes, and stronger mandatory and voluntary signals from key demand markets are key levers that can contribute to the sustainable transition of the cattle sector across the Brazilian Amazon, the Cerrado and other critical biomes. Confirmed speakers: José Octavio Passos, Director Brazilian Amazon, The Nature Conservancy Raoni Rajão, PhD, Director of Deforestation and Burning Control Policies, Ministry of Environment, Brazil Leila Harfuch, Managing Partner, Agroicone Fernando Sampaio, Sustainability Director, Brazilian Beef Exporters Association Mauro O'de Almeida, State Secretary for Environment and Sustainability, Pará State Government Toby Gardner, Director, SEI and Trase - Intelligence for sustainable trade #Cattle #Beef #OTFF #TropicalForests #Deforestation

In her article on the importance of investing in nature, Razan al Mubarak, President of IUCN and UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for COP28, writes about the critical work of Tropical Forest Alliance: “Net-zero targets cannot be met without action on deforestation yet a number of key companies and financial institutions are persistently ignoring their role in exacerbating the problem. This needs to change and leaders within the sector are demonstrating how, with initiatives like Tropical Forest Alliance playing a pivotal role in galvanising the finance sector on this critical issue.” https://lnkd.in/g5EKshu6 #COP #Finance #Deforestation

In Madre de Dios in Peru, Tropical Forest Alliance has been working with the Climate Group and WWF Perú to tackle deforestation from cattle farming. In this region, extensive cattle farming is the number one cause of deforestation. The pilot project introduced sustainable agriculture and livestock practices to recover and regenerate forests in the Peruvian Amazon, and contribute to local economic development. It has also introduced nature-based solutions in Madre de Dios, with the aim of sequestering and storing GHG emissions, improving local livelihoods and supporting Peru's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) towards 2050. Tropical Forest Alliance supported the project with technical capacity building around silvopastoral systems in the Tampobata and Tahuamanu provinces. https://lnkd.in/gX5Ffq9b #Cattle #CattleRanching #Peru #Amazon #TropicalForests #Deforestation #Beef