Deforestation-free products? Not quite yet
Deforestation-free products? Not quite yet
đ The EU's ambitious plans hit a nerve.
FROM THE EDITORâS DESK
WorldWise readerâ
Itâs usually a tense moment when a piece youâve published gets strong pushback from someone.
This weekâs lead story reminded me of those occasions when, after clearing the possibility of error, the tension in editorial meetings was followed by a satisfied smile. The experienced people in the room understood that when your work gets a reaction, thatâs when you know youâre on the right track.
And so it may be with the EUâs deforestation lawâread on for the details, followed by our curated news highlights.
Anita
INSIGHT | views & analysis
Momentum began to build at COP26.
Back in 2021, at the UN climate meeting held in Glasgow, more than 100 world leaders pledged to stop and reverse deforestation. We recorded mixed signals about its prospects at the time. But Europe pushed through the resistance with a bold timetableâuntil now.
A landmark legislation it designed to curb global deforestation by ending imports of consumer goods linked to felled forests was due to be implemented in December. Under the scheme, EU citizens would shop assured that the products they consume arenât harming forested landâcreating an incentive for companies and producers to reduce their environmental impact.
But a year-long delay is now on the cards, raising fears the legislation may be watered-down, or even abandoned altogether.
Effectively a last-minute decision, the development reflects backlash against what many see as a plan that creates too strong a shock for what farmers and economies can absorbââthe result of ambitious environmental aims clashing with hard realityâ, write John Ainger, Ewa Krukowska and Agnieszka de Sousa for Bloomberg.
The bottom line vs. standing forests
Media reports point to an estimated hit in the region of $110 billion worth of trade in coffee, cocoa, soy, beef and other commodities affected by the plan. Companies and emerging economiesâespecially major agriculture producers including Brazil, China and Indonesia, which make up a large share of EU importsâsaid they needed more time and money to prepare.
Concerns about economic impact arenât just focused on big-business. Some leaders expressed concern that the legislation would block millions of small farmers in developing countries fro selling their products on a major market. âYou canât work good for the planet and do bad for the people,â Mia Mottley, Barbadosâ Prime Minister, told Devex back in February.
In essence, the European Commissionâs plan has exposed a perennial divide between what environmentalists are pushing for, and the economic realities that have politicians pushing back.
For weeks, weâve seen reports about wildfires burning through large swathes of forest in Latin America. And year after year we hear how little is being done on forest protection. Just this week, the newly launched Forest Declaration Assessment highlights an âalarming lack of progressâ, presenting evidence that deforestation has increased globally over the past yearâthis comes a decade since pre-COP26Â pledges to reduce deforestation and support sustainable land use.
âThe only sobering conclusion is that we seem to be running backward,â said Robert Nasi, Director General at CIFOR - Center for International Forestry Research, in a press release.
The trade-offs are real, and theyâre hard to avoid.
The EC has talked down its decision to delay enforcement as an attempt to give countries and businesses the time and money they need to adapt their systems to the monitoring demanded by the law.
But some observers are concerned that this extra time is a gift to detractors, giving them plenty of opportunity to weaken the law to a point where it no longer has the bite it needs to move sustainability goals forward.
This legislation reflects the kind of market-level changeâor signal, at leastâthat would make a difference at scale. Change is often painful, and that needs to be both acknowledged and mitigated, especially for the smaller players more likely to suffer losses.
Stay tuned. Commitment to a vision of more responsible consumption is being tested.
[Sources: Bloomberg + Sensemaker + Devex + Guardian]
GLOBAL BRIEFING | around the world
Highlights
đ In Oxfamâs From Poverty to Power, Duncan Green digests two analyses by the Economist on âthe state of the worldââone supporting the argument that the worldâs poorest countries have had a âbrutal decadeâ, and the other picking up on this yearâs UN General Assembly to point out the ongoing shift towards a world where the US is no longer the dominant power. From The worldâs poorest countries have experienced a brutal decade:
In the two decades after 1995, gaps in GDP per person narrowed, extreme poverty plummeted and global public health and education improved vastly ⌠Today, however, those miracles are a faint memory.
From Americaâs clout is weakening on the global stage:
The accusation of Western double standards, gleefully amplified by Russia and China, resonated across the halls of UN headquarters on September 18th as the General Assembly adopted a far-reaching resolution to exert pressure on Israel to end its occupation of Palestinian territories within a year.
đ The science behind a movement that calls for shrinking economies to save the planet is weak, according to analysis by Kelsey Piper, a senior writer at Vox Future Perfect who is often critical of the degrowth movement.
đ Mogadishuâs skyline is transforming as investors pour money into new apartment buildings and shopping centresâbut the new developments are also widening inequality in the city, home to hundreds of thousands of Somaliaâs displaced people, writes Sagal Abas Bafo for The New Humanitarian.
Spotlight onâŚ
The UNâs Summit of the Future: In late September, the United Nations hosted the Summit of the Futureâa four-day meeting in New York City, where world leaders backed updated commitments to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.
The summit resulted in the adoption of three outcome documents: the Pact for the Future and its two annexes, the Global Digital Compact and the Declaration on Future Generations. It also adopted a Political Declaration on Antimicrobial Resistance.
Going into the meeting, expectations from observers were pretty low. While the event took place in the shadow of war in the Middle East, Ukraine and Sudan, the UNâs language reinforces its own relevance in working towards peace, with the lofty goal of âreimagin[ing] a system of global governance that works for allâ to tackle pressing global issues, from climate change to pandemics and the rise of AI.
đ BONUSâmore detailed notes on the Summit are available to paid subscribers here.
Seeking solutions
đĄBangkok is turning to planting âcity forestsâ to help adapt to flooding by soaking up excess rainwater runoff, Claire Turrell reports for Mongabay.
đĄBanana wine is a growing industry in Malawiâonce extreme heat began to ripen bananas too quickly, causing small-scale farmers to lose income, they turned to winemaking as a solution, report Anne Okumu & Ashley Lime for BBC News.
đĄ Slow, small-scale mining could be a solution to overconsumption, Cassia Johnson and colleagues argue in The Conversation.
The slow fashion and slow food movements are an antidote to overconsumption, promoting sustainability by emphasizing the value of quality, origin and production. New research suggests that a slow, small-scale mining movement could maintain supply, yield similar sustainability outcomes and provide a range of other benefits.
In other news
âĄď¸ On climate & energy
The worst drought in Brazil's history isnât just a problem for forest firesâitâs also hitting the countryâs GDP, and global food prices, write Dayanne Sousa and Andrew Rosati for Bloomberg.
The problem is global, write the editors of Eurasia Review, highlighting how droughts and extreme temperatures have affected crop productivity in regions across the world.
A wildfire has spread close to homes and forested areas in Ecuador's capital of Quito, where a record drought is underway, report Reuters and Tortoise.
Much of the drought seen across Latin America can be explained by climate changeâbut itâs also being exacerbated by deforestation, Terrence McCoy reports for The Washington Post.
Dairy farmers are struggling with plummeting milk yields because of extreme heat in India, Sneha Richhariya reports for Dialogue Earth.
After years of drought and poor water-management decisions, two major lakes are drying up in Argentina, reports Victoria Traxler for The Guardian.
While Elon Musk and Argentinaâs president are discussing Teslaâs lithium needs, in the countryâs northwest, local residents are left with no water or arsenic pollution after letting lithium mining companies onto their land, reports Lucila Pellettieri for Global Press Journal.
In September, a United Nations panel issued guiding principles on how the pursuit of minerals for the âgreenâ energy transition needs to safeguard human rights, justice, and equity, according to Human Rights Watch.
Unexpected weather patterns are turning parts of the Sahara desert much greener than usual, report Dan Stillman and Ian Livingston for The Washington Post.
đą On environmental protection
Global companies are partnering with Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States for a carbon credits deal that will pay the Brazilian state of Parå up to US$180 million to reduce carbon emissions from deforestation, according to Reuters, Tortoise and Norway's International Climate and Forest Initiative. The state is due to host the UN Cop30 climate summit next year, and is home to about 40% of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon.
Guyana has launched a global alliance to focus on starting a biodiversity credits market by uniting biodiversity-rich countries to scale up innovative finance for conservation, reports Thomas Cox for Carbon Plus.
Nicha Wachpanich reports for Dialogue Earth on Thailandâs move to bring mature mangroves into its new carbon market despite concerns from local communities.
In Peru, soaring gold prices and rising poverty are making illegal mining more appealing, even in remote parts of the Amazon, reports Dan Collyns for Context, while Fernanda Wenzel reports for Mongabay on a study concluding that nearly all Brazilian gold imported by EU probably comes from illegal operations.
For the BBC, Christine Ro tells the story of how Roberto Brito learned to see value of living trees differently in turning from logger to tourism operator in the Brazilian Amazon.
Brito's transition, from cutting down the forest to leading hikes in it, was dramatic. It required the support and alignment of financial, social and environmental incentives. His story suggests that with the right combination of encouragements, and by tapping into the knowledge and skills of people working within an extractive industry, there may be a viable path out of it for some.
For the Guardian, Patrick Greenfield profiles Colombian environment minister Susana Muhamad, âone of the biggest opponents of fossil fuel on the world stageâ. She also spoke to Bloomberg Greenâs Akshat Rathi (đ) about Colombiaâs push to recruit other large economies to quit fossil fuels.
In the first known instance of part of the ocean being granted legal personhood, the Brazilian city of Linhares has legally recognised its waves as living beings, Isabella Kaminski reports for Hakai.
đ¸ YOUR SUPPORT MATTERS
A big thank you to those of you who continue to support my time and energy for the project. If a paid subscription is not an option for you, consider showing support with a tap on đ¤ to flag the post for others, or simply spread the word with your networks đ˛
PLUS | in other editions
This week weâre introducing Briefing notes, a bonus edition for paying subscribers to access extra coverage for insight on trending issuesâstarting with the UNâs Summit of the Future, plus extra bits and pieces that catch my eye.
And if you missed it, the latest MEDIA edition leads with some thoughts on the work it takes to communicate âsimple truthsâ or complex realities, picking up on this yearâs World News Dayâplus dozens of new grants, fellowships and other opportunities.
PS.
Thank you.
WorldWise is read across 67 countriesâit remains independent thanks to the support of subscribers like you, and to the rest of my nomadic work-life. Sign up | Browse archive | Sponsor an issue
Created and edited by Anita Makriâjournalist/writer, producer and editorial adviser covering global development and science in society. I also help selected organisations with compatible values to strengthen their media work. LinkedIn | Instagram | Email