Climate 411

Bonn 2025: Charting the Path to COP30 and Enhanced Climate Action

By Sarah Swain and Zach Cohen / Published: June 12, 2025

2025 June Climate Meetings. UNFCCC/ Amira Grotendiek

Next week, the international climate community will convene in Bonn for the 62nd session of the UNFCCC Subsidiary Bodies (June 16-26, 2025), or SB62. SB62 marks a critical milestone on the road to COP30 in Belém, Brazil, shaping the preparation and setting the stage for the negotiations.  

The meetings in Bonn will be guided by a central principle set by COP30 Presidency: the idea of “global mutirão,” the power of collective action to achieve goals no single actor can accomplish alone. Brazil has launched this initiative to identify common ground across regions and sectors, finding areas of convergence that can drive ambitious climate action forward. The Presidency has underscored the urgent need for this collaborative approach, particularly at SB62, to rebuild the multilateral trust strained during COP29 and by widening geopolitical rifts.  

Answering the global call for climate action, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) is putting the spirit of “mutirão” into practice. At its core, EDF’s “mutirão” is already in our DNA. We play a unique role working with partners and allies across society – from local communities, major companies, Indigenous Peoples, governments and more – to find the shared goals that lead to groundbreaking solutions. Embracing collaboration and partnership has led us to impactful wins for planet and people: from supporting Indigenous Peoples’ participation in UN spaces to conserve forests, to gathering national oil companies together under an ambitious goal to slash methane emissions. Our commitment to this inclusive approach is essential for rebuilding the global trust needed for swift, fair, and ambitious climate action that delivers.  

Here are the thematic issues and topics EDF will be actively engaged in during SB62:

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Also posted in Brazil, Climate Finance, Indigenous People, International, News, Oceans, Paris Agreement, United Nations / Tagged , , , , | Authors: , / Leave a comment

How to improve soil modeling to maximize climate and farm benefits

By Jocelyn Lavallee / Published: May 2, 2024

Credit: Zoran Zeremski/iStock

Efforts to curb agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and increase soil carbon storage are picking up steam to help mitigate the impacts of climate change. To have maximum impact, we need ways to reliably quantify their outcomes. 

Direct measurement of the impacts of climate smart agricultural practices are imperative to instill confidence, but they aren’t forward-looking and can’t be done everywhere. Enter the use of process-based models (e.g., DNDC, DayCent) to estimate these changes more rapidly and across broader areas.  

Process-based models are useful tools, but they have limitations, and many researchers and practitioners remain uncertain about how to use them most effectively. Yet, while skepticism in their accuracy remains a challenge, interest in them is skyrocketing, making it even more important that the community work together on their improvement.  

A new report led by Environmental Defense Fund digs into how carbon project developers and companies are using process-based models across projects to explore current challenges, identify knowledge gaps and recommend improvements.  

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Also posted in Innovation, News, Science / Read 1 Response

Cherry blossoms: a microcosm of the global climate crisis

By Ilissa Ocko / Published: March 21, 2024

Cherry blossoms in Washington, D.C. reached peak bloom extremely early this year. Photo by Ilissa Ocko

(This blog was co-authored by EDF Climate Scientist Fiona Lo)

Washington D.C.’s famous cherry blossoms are once again blooming earlier than expected.  

In fact, this year’s peak bloom occurred two and a half weeks earlier than the average over the past 100 years, due to near-record warm temperatures in March. 

This ranks as the second earliest peak bloom on record. Even the cherry blossom bud cycle occurred faster than any other year in the last two decades.  

So what is happening and why is this significant?  

Here we break down what you need to know about cherry blossoms and climate change. 

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Also posted in Basic Science of Global Warming, Extreme Weather, News, Science / Comments are closed

New carbon credit integrity guidelines could boost buyer confidence in agriculture

By Amy Hughes / Published: October 26, 2023

Voluntary carbon markets are a source of much-needed finance to help the agriculture sector realize its potential for climate mitigation. Still, carbon credit buyers face challenges in differentiating carbon credits that represent real and verifiable climate impact, based on the latest science and best practices in a crowded marketplace. It takes due diligence to get this right, and changes are underway to make the process easier.  

New guidance on high-integrity carbon credits from an independent governance body has important implications for all credit categories, including those generated by the agricultural sector.   Read More »

Also posted in Carbon Markets / Comments are closed

Bonn climate talks: The Global Stocktake, oceans, food and nature are issues to watch

By Guest Author / Published: June 1, 2023

EDF’s delegation to the climate talks taking place in Bonn, Germany from June 5 to June 15 give us some insights into the issues they’re following. 

Flags on clear sky. Getty.

Next week, climate negotiators will convene in Bonn, Germany for a two-week negotiation session that will serve as an important marker on the road to the COP28 climate talks in Dubai this November. The outcome of the talks, known as SB58, will set the stage for the negotiations at COP28, giving us an indication of what needs to happen in the months leading up to those pivotal talks.

Every year the climate negotiations become more urgent as we draw closer to the timelines for meeting the Paris Agreement goals. The task is even more challenging when considering the other crises the world faces, like economic disruption, energy insecurity and food scarcity. We need effective solutions that can solve for these multiple challenges simultaneously. The talks in Bonn are an important opportunity to gauge progress and push forward key action points that address these various challenges, in the lead up to COP28, and beyond.

EDF’s delegation to the Bonn climate talks are closely monitoring various important issues inside and around the negotiations. These include the Global Stocktake process, food, fisheries and ocean issues, and efforts to expand high-integrity carbon market cooperation.

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Also posted in Carbon Markets, Forest protection, International, News, Oceans, Paris Agreement, United Nations / Comments are closed

3 ways to include rural communities in emerging climate solutions

By Akin Olumoroti / Published: April 3, 2023

Photo of a field of crops

Rural communities across the United States are extraordinarily diverse, all experiencing a wide variety of landscapes, cultural identities and ways of life. But many express common concerns — they are watching their populations deplete as the country urbanizes, their economic systems are becoming more perilous, and there is a feeling of being left behind as the rest of the country moves towards new solutions that are not designed for their reality — including climate solutions. Despite being essential stakeholders in climate solutions, rural communities are often excluded from the conversation around their deployment.

As we continue to transition to cleaner forms of energy and as recent Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and Inflation Reduction Act investments begin to roll out, there will be a need for the development and deployment of energy technologies at a scale we haven’t seen before now. To ensure that all communities have the resources and support they need to mitigate the impacts of climate change, it is important for governments and other organizations to include rural communities in their work.

The Rural Vision for Climate Innovation project set out to learn about rural attitudes and perceptions of climate innovation through 30 stakeholder interviews with ‘grasstop’ leaders and regional focus groups. We wanted to understand how rural Americans view climate investments and invite them to tell us how they want these solutions to show up in their communities.

Here are three main takeaways from the project:

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Also posted in Cities and states, Economics, Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Innovation, Policy / Comments are closed