The Global EverGreening Alliance and Mirova launch one of the largest nature-based carbon removal programmes in Asia.
On the occasion of the climate COP27 taking place in Egypt, the Global EverGreening Alliance and Mirova, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers 100% dedicated to sustainable investing, have joined forces to launch one of the largest nature-based carbon removal programmes in Asia beginning with a US$15million investment in the Philippines.
The “Restore South-East Asia” programme aims to restore degraded lands across the region and has the potential to impact over 600,000 households. Designed through a development lens, the programme puts rural communities at the centre of restoration efforts. The partnership between the Global EverGreening Alliance (GEA) and Mirova begins in the Philippines with an initial investment of US$15million, with the intention to scale-up across an additional five countries including Timor Leste, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Indonesia – taking the overall investment to US$90 million.
The program aims to directly support around 30,000 households, to restore over 33,000 hectares of land in the Philippines, and to capture over 4 million tons of carbon in the process. In addition to the significant benefits that rural communities will receive from more sustainable and productive farming practices, they will also benefit from carbon finance revenues, contributing to their long-term economic empowerment.
“In order to meet the Paris Agreement’s objectives, we need to channel more capital towards Nature-based Solutions, which can contribute to both climate change mitigation and adaptation. South-East Asia offers a large and untapped potential, for land restoration and community resilience programmes. We are proud to team up with GEA to work closely with local operators” says Sam Lampert, Investment Director at Mirova.
An international, recognised leader in sustainable finance, Mirova was created ten years ago to develop investment solutions aimed at accelerating the transformation of the economy towards a sustainable model. Its natural capital platform is a telling example of how innovative finance can be when it comes to financing land restoration, oceans conservation or biodiversity. Through its dedicated sustainable land use strategy, Mirova has invested in more than 30 projects worldwide in the space of natural capital.
The Global EverGreening Alliance (the Alliance) is the world’s largest environmental restoration alliance of research, conservation, and development sector organisations, focused on developing and delivering large-scale transformative projects to restore landscapes and rebuild livelihoods. Uniting over 80 of the world’s most capable research, development, and conservation NGOs it is uniquely positioned to scale-up restoration efforts to address global development challenges, and to fostering collaboration, harmonisation and shared learning across institutions, sectors, and borders in South-East Asia.
“Small-scale farming communities in South East Asia are some of the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Working with partners like Mirova, who are dedicated to sustainable C2 – Internal Natixis investment, allows us to put the needs of vulnerable families at the heart of land restoration and
deliver programs that scale-up more sustainable and productive farming practices, and create long-term economic empowerment.” says Chris Armitage, Chief Executive Officer at Global EverGreening Alliance.