Commitment of countries and companies to sustainable agriculture and land use

95 high-profile companies from a range of sectors pledge to be ‘nature positive’ and pledge to act to halt and reverse nature’s degradation by 2030.

At the end of the first week of COP26, negotiations are gaining momentum.
Today, governments and companies are joining farmers and communities at COP26 to secure new agreements to protect nature and accelerate the transition to sustainable agriculture and land use practices by making them more attractive, accessible and affordable than unsustainable alternatives.

In addition to the events on Nature and Land Use Day, the first week of COP26 is over. Negotiations speed up and work is focused on the second week.

In Two Action Plans, 26 countries committed to making their agricultural policies more sustainable and environmentally friendly and investing in the science essential to sustainable agriculture and protecting the food supply from climate change. All continents were represented, including India, Colombia, Vietnam, Germany, Ghana and Australia.

Examples of national commitments aligned with this agenda are:

Brazil’s plan to expand the ABC+ Low Carbon Agriculture Program to 72 million hectares and reduce emissions by 1 billion tons by 2030

Germany plans to reduce emissions from land use by 25 million tons by 2030

The UK aims to involve 75% of farmers in low-carbon practices by 2030

The UK has also announced £500 million in funding to support the implementation of the Forest, Agriculture and Raw Materials Trade (FACT) Roadmap presented earlier this week during the Global Summit of Heads of State or Government, which brings together 28 countries working together to protect forests while strengthening development. and trade. Another £65 million will support equitable rural transformation to help developing countries change their policies and practices to more sustainable agriculture and food production.

The commitments countries have made will help implement the Glasgow Leaders Declaration on Forests and Land Use, which is now endorsed by 134 countries that make up 91% of the world’s forests. The declaration aims to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation by 2030.

Alok Sharma, President of COP26, said: “If we are to limit global warming and keep the 1.5°C target alive, the world must use the land sustainably and put protecting and restoring nature at the center of our actions.
The commitments entered into demonstrate that nature and land use are recognized as essential to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement and will contribute to overcoming the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss.
In order to conduct negotiations in the second week of the COP, I call on all parties to come to the negotiating table with the necessary constructive compromises and ambitions.”

As part of the Climate Action Plan, the World Bank will commit to spending $25 billion annually in climate finance through 2025, including a focus on agriculture and food systems.

In a similar private sector engagement, nearly 100 high-profile companies across a range of sectors have committed to becoming “nature positive.” The commitments include supermarkets that pledge to reduce their environmental impact in the event of climate and nature loss, and fashion brands that ensure their materials can be traced.

Indigenous and local community representatives will participate in events throughout Nature Day. As stewards of 80% of the world’s remaining biodiversity, indigenous peoples lead the way in developing nature-based, resilient and effective solutions to climate change.

Nature Day also comes on the heels of the announcement at Oceans Action Day on November 5th that more than ten new countries are joining the “30 by30” goal of protecting 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030. These were: Bahrain, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia, India, Qatar, Samoa, Tonga, Gambia and Georgia. Target is now supported by more than 100 countries.