Initiatives
An overview of initiatives that are helping to accelerate investment in nature-based solutions.
How these initiatives were selected
This list includes an initial select group of initiatives from around the world that are helping to accelerate investment in nature-based solutions. It will evolve. Many are collaborations across multiple organizations, governments, and stakeholder groups. (They are not investment vehicles nor are they primarily focused on building investment vehicles.)
Initiative | Solutions | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100) | Sustainable Forest Management | AFR100 is a country-led effort to bring 100 million hectares of land in Africa into restoration by 2030. Through a partnership of 31 African governments and numerous technical and financial partners, AFR100 aims to accelerate restoration to enhance food security, increase climate change resilience and mitigation, and combat rural poverty. Its strategy involves engaging all relevant stakeholders in the assessment of restoration opportunities followed by the identification, testing and active upscaling of promising solutions. Currently, 32 countries have committed to restoring 128 million hectares, mobilizing $1 billion in development finance and $481 million in private-sector commitments. |
 | Amazon Investors Coalition | Sustainable Forest Management | The Amazon Investor Coalition aims to increase forest-friendly economic development and the rule of law across the Amazon region. Launched on September 16, 2020, at the United Nations 75 Global Governance Forum, the Amazon Investor Coalition facilitates collaboration between investors and philanthropies with governments, non-profits and allies through a global network platform. Its strategy involves facilitating partnerships through research, an online summit, periodic issue-focused gatherings, partnerships with diverse investor networks, and a weekly call-and-podcast series. |
 | Better Life Farming | Sustainable Intensification for Smallholders | Better Life Farming (BLF) enables smallholders to unlock their farming potential. Partnered with Bayer, the International Finance Corporation and Netafim, BLF's goal is to increase the productivity and profitability of smallholder farmers by providing training, access to resources and markets and partnering with public, private and local organizations. As of July 2021, BLF had established 900 BLF Centers in India, Indonesia, and Bangladesh, supporting more than 300,000 smallholder farmers who have earned an average of US$2,000 in their first year of operation (double the country’s rural household average income). |
 | Central Africa Forest Initiative | Sustainable Forest Management | The Central Africa Forest Initiative (CAFI) aims to support governments in the region as they implement reforms and enhance investments to address such challenges as poverty, food insecurity and climate change which put pressure on tropical forests. The CAFI is a joint collaboration between UNDP, FAO, the World Bank, six Central African countries and a coalition of donors. Through 30 approved programs, $494.7 million has been committed and $202 million dollars have been transferred through the CAFI. |
 | Coalition for Private Investment in Conservation (CPIC) | Ecosystem Restoration | CPIC is a global multi-stakeholder initiative focused on enabling conditions that support a material increase in private, return-seeking investment in conservation. CPIC's strategy involves creating models for the successful delivery of investable priority conservation projects, connecting pipeline providers of such projects with deal structuring support, and convening conservation project delivery parties with investors to execute investable deals. CPIC's mission targets approximately $18 billion per year of private funding that is currently mobilised for conservation finance. South Pole serves as CPIC’s Secretariat and Platform Coordinator. |
 | Council for Small Holder Agricultural Finance | Sustainable Intensification for Smallholders | CSAF is 'the leading global network of lending practitioners promoting an inclusive finance market for agricultural SMEs.' Founded in 2012, CSAF is now composed of 16 members and affiliates who have come together on a pre-competitive basis to share learning, promote industry standards and engage other stakeholders. CSAF's aim is to build a thriving finance market that serves agricultural businesses and supports their positive impact on smallholder farmers and environmentally sustainable practices globally. Between 2013 and 2019, CSAF members lent $4.25 billion to 1,419 businesses, supporting 3.4 million smallholder farmers. |
 | Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund | Ecosystem Restoration | The Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund (CEPF) is a global donor fund focused on empowering civil society in developing countries and transitional economies to protect the world’s biodiversity hotspots. As a joint program between l’Agence Française de Développement, Conservation International, the European Union, the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Japan and the World Bank, the fund seeks to protect biodiversity, build long-term local conservation leadership and nurture sustainable development. As of 2021, CEPF has issued grants totalling more than US$271 million and provided technical assistance to over 2,500 civil society organizations and individuals. |
 | Finance for Biodiversity Initiative | Ecosystem Restoration | The F4B initiative aims to increase the materiality of biodiversity in financial decision-making to better align global finance with nature conservation and restoration. Founded in 2019 by the MAVA Foundation (based in Switzerland) and supported by the Moore Foundation, F4B operates as a dual-purpose platform involving its own research and implementation capability as well as a programme for regranting resources to others. Its aim is to raise the profile of biodiversity in financial decison-making rather than attempting to 'mobilise money for nature'. This strategy is focused on five key areas: market efficiency and innovation, biodiversity-related liability, catalysing nature markets, citizen engagement and public campaign, responses to the COVID crisis. |
 | Finance for Forest Initiative | Sustainable Forest Management | The Finance for Forest Initiative aims to harness private sector finance to conserve the world's forests. As a joint initiative between BHP, Conservation International and Pollination, the Finance for Forest Initiative is encouraging the replication of previous investments in conservation such as the International Finance Corporation's US$152 million Forests Bond, supported by BHP. The Finance for Forest Initiative aims to act as a hub of learning for the exploration of innovative private finance tools to conserve forests and further advance REDD+. |
 | Good Food Institute | Alternative Protein | Good Food Institute (GFI) aims to accelerate alternative protein innovation by organizing the field's data and catalyzing investment in alternative proteins. Based in the US with five affiliate offices globally, GFI is a non-profit organisation that relies on philanthropic funding. GFI's strategy is to identify the most effective solutions, mobilize resources and talent, and empower partners across the food system to make alternative proteins accessible, affordable, and delicious. Its activities are focused on three key areas: science, policy and industry. |
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