February 2021

Biodiversity newsletter

IIED's biodiversity newsletter is sent out every two months to keep you updated on our and partners' work on the links between biodiversity, conservation and local people's livelihoods.

In this edition we discuss plans for the 2021 'super year', debt swaps for climate and nature, combatting illegal wildlife trade and more.

Informal settlement with the words 'We can shape the future' overlaid.

Happy new super year! Why is 2021 such a big deal for climate, nature and people?

The world is dealing with multiple and intertwined crises – climate change, unprecedented biodiversity loss, rising inequalities and the COVID-19 pandemic. At IIED we’re gearing up for an exceptional year in 2021: a year of great ambition and opportunity to drive better outcomes for climate change, nature and people.

Read the blog by senior researcher Ebony Holland to find out more.

Spotlight: Connecting climate change and nature

Fishermen on the Senegal River, near Podor, Senegal.

Project

Debt swaps for climate and nature outcomes in West Africa

We urgently need to address the triple crisis of debt distress, biodiversity loss and climate change. This project will scope how this could be done through debt swaps for nature and climate outcomes in Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania and Senegal in West Africa.

Find out about the new project.

Key events

IIED and the 2021 ‘super year’

2021 presents major opportunities to increase the focus on addressing climate, nature and development priorities together. Also known as the ‘super year’, 2021 will see a number of major meetings including negotiation conferences for both the climate change and biodiversity conventions amid a range of major international and regional events.

See how IIED will work with partners to address these interconnected crises.

Make Change Happen podcast episode 9

No time to lose – collective action for our common future

In the first podcast episode of 2021, we hear from IIED director Andrew Norton; Ineza Umehoza Grace, founder and chief executive officer of the Rwandan organisation The Green Fighter; and IIED chair Dr Tara Shine, discussing how early action, youth participation and collaborative policymaking are pivotal to making a better future for us all.

Listen to the podcast now.

Our partners' perspectives

Mind map with the words food security in the middle.

Take the survey

Help us ensure we are asking the right questions

Meeting the UN 2030 agenda for sustainable development requires that we make informed and effective evidence-based decisions. It is vital that we ensure that the research and development priorities of producers and consumers align; that the evidence we produce is fit-for-purpose.

To support this objective, the Sentinel project is leading a horizon scanning activity to identify the 100 most critical research questions that would have the greatest positive impact on food security, ecosystem health and inequality in sub-Saharan Africa.

Please help Sentinel to identify the questions. Find out more and fill in the survey.

People standing around a table with a flipchart on it.

Q&A

Communities combating illegal wildlife trade in East Africa

Three participants in a recent series of online learning sessions on wildlife conservation in East Africa discuss why engaging with communities is critical to combating illegal wildlife trade.

Read the interview.

A woman farming in the development zone of Mulobezi Game Management Area, Zambia.

Project

Enhancing governance of community-based natural resource management in Zambia

Governance of community-managed protected areas in Zambia is on the decline. Zambia CBNRM Forum, with technical support from IIED, will support stakeholders of six community-managed protected areas to improve their governance and share lessons across the eastern and southern Africa region.

Find out more about the project.