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COP26 corridors: Conversations on climate action

Snapshots from the climate summit in Glasgow
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Salina Abraham, strategic advisor to the Global Landscapes Forum, speaks at a “high level” plenary at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. UNFCCC/Kiara Worth

Scientists with the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF) participated in more than 30 events on the sidelines of the U.N. COP26 climate summit in Glasgow — many of them hybrid, with some participants on site and others online.

It was a significant year for forests at the annual summit, which was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the Declaration on Forests and Land Use, several other commitments were made to protect forests and ecosystems, supported by public and private financing.

In an effort to address a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions caused by agriculture, forestry and other land-use, 45 governments pledged to protect nature and transform farming practices to make them more sustainable. The pledge includes investments to help build resilience against extreme weather events.

It also recognizes that farmers are on the frontlines of the fight against climate change and that urgent action on land use is needed as food demand grows. Deforestation, degraded soils and ecosystems have negative consequences for production, threatening to curtail their livelihoods.

Contributions from CIFOR-ICRAF scientists, partners and friends at the summit demonstrated that concrete action on climate change is not only possible, but already underway. 

While teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg once again made headline-grabbing speeches covered by major news outlets, other protestors lingered, held vigils, enacted performance art or left symbolic objects outside the gates of the COP26 venue, determined to have their say. 

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