This report synthesizes the shared experiences, challenges, and solutions suggested by several dozen young landscape practitioners and experts across Africa who participated in a series of consultations centered on the restoration of African ecosystems. Co- written by several experts in the field, this report covers gaps and solutions across policy, finance, capacity building, and communication to show how landscape restoration can be scaled for long-term impact on people and the planet. The report identifies 4 opportunities for transformative change:

1. Finance: create flexible financing and resources for community-led restoration.
2. Policy: commit to a paradigm shift, ensuring youth and excluded groups are meaningfully represented in decision-making.
3. Capacity development: support the capacity of young experts and restoration practitioners across Africa.
4. Communications: use clear, culturally appropriate methods and platforms to co-create and communicate about restoration.

Are you attending UNCCD COP16? Join us on 9 December at 09:00 local time (UTC+3) at the Restoration Pavilion for the session “How are young visionaries rewriting the future of Africa’s landscapes?“

Join 1M+ youth on the Youth in Landscapes Initiative, driving change for people and landscapes worldwide!

The post Rooted in restoration Youth-led transformative change for regreening Africa appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

1. Recognizing Nature’s Value: Incentivize sustainable practices through Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) and biodiversity certifications.
2. Empowering Local Communities: Provide fair funding and capacity-building for Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
3. Landscape-Based Solutions: Promote integrated, cross-sectoral approaches for large-scale biodiversity impact.
4. Domestic Finance & Subsidy Reform: Strengthen national funding mechanisms and redirect harmful subsidies.
5. Private Investment Mobilization: Encourage biodiversity-positive investments through blended finance and de-risking strategies.
6. Raising Ambition: Scale global funding commitments and simplify access to financial resources for conservation projects.

This roadmap highlights innovative and collaborative solutions to finance biodiversity, ensuring nature and communities thrive together.

EXPLORE THE INTERACTIVE REPORT NOW!

Discover how the Luxembourg–GLF Platform drives nature-based investments.

The post Building a path to finance the biodiversity framework – Outcomes of the 7th GLF Investment Case Symposium appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

• Practitioners involved in designing alternative development policies and programs.
• Local project implementers and coordinators.

The guide compiles experiences and success factors to help inform alternative development and sustainable livelihood projects. It offers guidance, not one-size-fits-all solutions, and encourages local assessment and adaptation to specific contexts.

Key Messages

• Focuses on environmentally sustainable practices, forest conservation, carbon credit schemes, and payments for environmental services.
• Draws from diverse best practices across sectors, including agriculture, livestock, fisheries, and forestry.
• Encourages collaboration with organizations like FAO, UNEP, and UNIDO, as well as local communities.

The post Practical Guide: Alternative Development and the Environment appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

With less than a decade left to achieve the critical global goals set for 2030, the window to act is closing fast. Africa must seize this moment to leverage local knowledge, advance technology, and mobilize sustainable finance to lead the charge in creating a thriving, climate-resilient future for generations to come.

On 17 September, 3,500 participants gathered at the GLF Africa Hybrid Conference in Nairobi, Kenya, and online to build a greener and more resilient future in Africa.

Key takaways

1. Accelerate landscape restoration and integrated landscape management
2. Center local communities for lasting solutions
3. Secure land rights and strengthen governance frameworks
4. Build a restoration economy
5. Leverage technology and open data
6. Foster partnerships and cross-sector collaborations

The post GLF Africa 2024 Outcome Statement | Building a greener and resilient future in Africa by 2030 appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

About GLF Africa 2024

On 17 September, thousands of participants gathered at ‘GLF Africa 2024: Greening the African Horizon’ in Nairobi, Kenya, and online for a global conference focused on forging a prosperous and sustainable future for Africa’s land- and seascapes, driven by local solutions.

About Ariane Hildebrandt

Dr. Ariane Hildebrandt, Director General at Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) since September 2023, oversees global health, equality, digital technologies, and food security, including areas like social protection, education, sustainable supply chains, and rural development. Previously, she led policy, data, and effectiveness, managing bilateral development cooperation and implementing agencies (GIZ, KfW). With a career at BMZ since 1998, she also worked at the Federal Ministry of Finance and the University of Würzburg, where she earned her PhD. She holds a degree in economics and an MBA from the State University of New York at Albany.

The post Ariane Hildebrandt: “Community engagement is key to restore the land” appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

About GLF Africa 2024

On 17 September, thousands of participants gathered at ‘GLF Africa 2024: Greening the African Horizon’ in Nairobi, Kenya, and online for a global conference focused on forging a prosperous and sustainable future for Africa’s land- and seascapes, driven by local solutions.

The post Wraping up GLF Africa 2024 appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

About GLF Africa 2024

On 17 September, thousands of participants gathered at ‘GLF Africa 2024: Greening the African Horizon’ in Nairobi, Kenya, and online for a global conference focused on forging a prosperous and sustainable future for Africa’s land- and seascapes, driven by local solutions.

About this session

As the world turns its attention to the upcoming global climate, biodiversity and land summits, we look at the landscapes and livelihoods of local communities in Africa, that hold the keys to securing a sustainable, resilient, and prosperous future for the continent and beyond.

This plenary reflects on what is needed for Africa to leverage local knowledge and action on the ground to advance global climate, biodiversity, and land ambitions while securing the rights and livelihoods of its communities. It will centre community stewardship at the heart of regional and global agendas, and discuss the strategies and resources needed to harness the power of local solutions, bridging the gap between local realities and global processes to forge a prosperous and sustainable future for Africa.

The post Community stewardship: Bridging local realities and global processes appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

The report begins by examining the state of the resource, which is increasingly recognized across the world as a forest area crucial for carbon sequestration and for the conservation of biological diversity. The Congo Basin forest ecosystems are then put into perspective within the global context of discussions that can guide the management and governance of the entire world’s tropical forests for decades to come.

The report addresses topical issues such as peatland management and the relationship between the biodiversity management and the emergence or re-emergence of zoonotic diseases. And COVID-19 features notably in the chapter on this topic. Finally, the report identifies the main challenges that need to be addressed to achieve sustainable management of forest ecosystems in the Congo Basin, with the goal of ensuring that management contributes to improving the livelihoods and living environment of local communities and indigenous peoples.

The post The Forests of the Congo Basin: State of the Forests 2021 appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

The post Including Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) in Mangrove Conservation & Restoration appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.

• Indonesia’s legal system favors state land ownership, marginalizing Indigenous Dayak communities and disrupting traditional practices.
• Economic development prioritization over conservation results in a limited understanding of the value of peatland ecosystems for the Indigenous Dayak.
• Community-led solutions, like a peatland zonation system, reveal policy challenges, including conflicts from the lack of informed consent and weak enforcement of laws recognizing Indigenous rights in Indonesia.

Ensuring the Safety of Peatlands: A Continuing Struggle

This research examines challenges faced by Indigenous Dayak communities in Indonesia due to a legal system favoring state land ownership, leading to the marginalization of these communities and disruption of their traditional land management practices. The prioritization of economic development over environmental and cultural conservation has resulted in a limited understanding of the value of the peatland ecosystem for Indigenous Dayak communities, leading to ineffective policies.

To address these issues, the research employs a descriptive qualitative approach, utilizing in-depth interviews and literature studies within the Tumbang Nusa and Pilang villages in Central Kalimantan. The findings reveal that the Indigenous Dayak Ngaju community has established a zonation system for peatland use, emphasizing the importance of specific policies to preserve sacred areas, vital for Indigenous values and practices.

However, the absence of free, prior, and informed consent in certain government initiatives, such as the Mega Rice project, Food Estate program, and Zero-burning policy, has resulted in social conflicts within the Indigenous Dayak community, leading to the destruction of their livelihoods. Despite existing laws in Indonesia acknowledging Indigenous rights and safeguarding customary lands, the research underscores the weak and inconsistent implementation and enforcement of these legal safeguards.

Iber Djamal, Dayak’s community elder and the main resource person for this research. Credit: Sumarni Sumarni.

The post Safeguarding Indigenous Rights and Territories: Integrating Dayak Ngaju Wisdom in Peatland Ecosystem Management appeared first on Global Landscapes Forum.