Members of the UNEP UN-REDD team participated in the UN Environment Programme retreat ‘Towards developing a One-UNEP strategy for the Brazilian Amazon’. The retreat, which took place from the 3rd to the 6th of April 2023 in Brasilia, aimed to foster dialogue, strengthen collaboration, and explore avenues for joint action to protect the invaluable Amazon ecosystem.
The meeting was a great opportunity to engage in discussions with the newly formed Brazilian government regarding the critical issue of Amazon rainforest conservation. A number of counterparts from the government, academia, NGOs and others participated in the retreat, discussing their vision and priorities, including main threats to the Amazon; the role of policy, law and regulation; the social outlook; science and technology; and economic activities. This included talks and participation from Environment Minister Marina Silva, Minister of Indigenous Peoples Sonia Guajajara, high ranking officials from Ministries of Environment, Finance, Foreign Affairs, as well as Amazonian state governors.
The discussions centered around the urgent need to address deforestation, land degradation, and climate change in the Amazon rainforest, which is recognized globally as a vital ecosystem for biodiversity conservation and climate regulation.
Key outcomes
The forest agenda in Brazil and the Amazon region is a key priority of national, regional, and global relevance. The discussions during the retreat made clear that this will require concerted efforts at the federal and state level with full engagement of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities.
During the retreat, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Marina Silva, stressed Brazil’s strong commitment to preventing and combat deforestation, promoting the bioeconomy, fostering sustainable rural production and forestry, to protecting indigenous and other traditional peoples and communities, while bolstering socio-economic development in the country.
One of the innovations announced by the Minister was the launch of a new Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Legal Amazon (PPCDAm), a public policy implemented by her during Lula's first term in office and responsible for a major decrease in deforestation levels. She spoke of the need for environmental policy to be executed in a cross-cutting way among different ministries, and about the need to put Brazil back into the leading role in the global socio-environmental agenda.
The Minister of Indigenous Peoples, Sonia Guajajara, pointed out that the titling of indigenous lands is an urgent priority for the Ministry, and also an important policy to support indigenous cultures and the stability of ecosystems around the planet.
To complete and implement their programs in the region, the country, and state governments require climate finance and a greater volume of payments. Results-based payments and purchase agreements can create enabling conditions for early investments in forests. In 2022, eight of the nine Amazonian states presented proposals to the LEAF Coalition, all of which passed the initial technical assessment panel. This was the first step towards becoming eligible for transactions with potential buyers of carbon credits generated from emissions reductions/removals.
UN-REDD, in collaboration with the Amazon Environment Research Institute (IPAM), and other stakeholders has been supporting the Consortium of Amazonian States and its representatives to articulate and convene high-level dialogues, particularly on REDD+ and on cross-cutting issues such as environmental integrity and quality of results and the stronger inclusion of IPLCs. UN-REDD is also committed to raising awareness, fostering collaboration, and advocating for the conservation of this remarkable region.
Through collaborative efforts, it is hoped that Brazil can forge a path toward a sustainable future for the Amazon rainforest, its communities, and the planet as a whole.
The next milestone on the agenda will be at the Amazon Summit, which will take place in the city of Belem at the end of August 2023, where several of the stakeholders present at the retreat will reconvene to measure progress on the activities identified as a priority.
