Forests, trees, and green spaces play a vital role in ensuring a healthy life for all on a global scale. This is one of the key messages of the global assessment titled “Forests and Trees for Human Health: Pathways, Impacts, Challenges and Response Options,” launched by the Global Forest Expert Panels Programme of the International Union of Forest Research Organization (IUFRO).

The need to assess and (re)design restoration plans, link them to finance, and upscale implementation was the focus of a side event that explored the seven-year-old Forest Ecosystem Restoration Initiative. 

The GEF Council endorsed $65 million for biodiversity projects, including more than $18 million to support the development of biodiversity finance plans in 26 countries. GEF Council members, meeting virtually, also approved the establishment of a new Gustavo Fonseca Youth Conservation Leadership program to support the education of promising young conservationists from developing countries.

A bold initiative was announced at a COP 27 side event: UN-REDD and the Green Gigaton Challenge seek to mobilize funding to achieve the crucial milestone of one gigaton of annual emissions reductions from forests by 2025, and annually after that. One gigaton is the equivalent of removing 80% of cars from roads in the United States.