Paying for Nature and Society
Policy Paper (Expected October 2021)
A Review of innovation in financial mechanisms to support an inclusive sustainability transition in agriculture will be delivered by the SDG Center for Latin America and the Caribbean (CODS-LAC) at Universidad de Los Andes (Bogota, Colombia). This scoping review will build on other studies to focus on understanding what makes these instruments work in terms of i) characteristics of the design; ii) compliance with the sought-after behavior; iii) additionality (the ability of the instrument to enhance environmental/productivity/inclusion goals); and iv) enabling factors in the environment. The analysis will seek to understand the challenges and complexity in achieving the multiple goals of environment-productivity-inclusion and offer recommendations for designing, implementing, and evaluating new instruments that address the multiple needs. The study will be published in English and Spanish.
Emerging results of this study were presented in several fora including:
IUCN Congress. CoSAI facilitated a session titled Agricultural Finance as a Force for Conservation: Innovations for and from the Global South on 07 September 2021 at the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources - IUCN World Conservation Congress. The session presented emerging results of a new study and held a panel discussion with the audience on how innovation in finance and public policy can leverage change. How can we innovate inclusive financial instruments to reward farmers and businesses for protecting and restoring nature in the Global South? The reality on the ground is still far from where we want to be. This lively session gave participants the chance to debate emerging findings and ideas with an expert panel, and spark collaborations for change. Read the highlights from the session here.
Regional Dialogues on Innovative Financial Mechanisms for Equitable and Sustainable Agriculture. Supported by CODS-LAC, the Alliance Bioversity-CIAT, and the IUCN regional office for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean (Hub ORMACC-SUR), CoSAI hosted on 29 September 2021 the first meeting focusing on the Latin American region. The review by CODS acted as a starting point, followed by a panel discussion of experts from all sectors in the Global South who have participated in innovation in financial mechanisms to support an inclusive sustainability transition in agriculture. The outcomes of the discussion will be incorporated into a policy brief to guide policymakers, financial institutions, and private businesses towards investments for innovation in financial instruments to promote SAI.
CoSAI will continue hosting other regional dialogues on this topic, with the support of IUCN. The next dialogues will have a focus on Asia (early November) and Africa (late November).