At the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, known as COP27, in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, IUCN President Razan Al Mubarak joined world leaders in launching a new global initiative that will drive the implementation of proven solutions that effectively harness nature to address climate adaptation and mitigation. 

On Biodiversity Day at COP27 (16 November), Ms. Al Mubarak, UK High Level Climate Champion Nigel Topping, Egypt’s Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad, and other leaders unveiled the ENACT initiative, which will coordinate global efforts to address climate change, land and ecosystem degradation, and biodiversity loss through Nature-based Solutions (NbS). This initiative will drive the adoption of NbS on a global scale, and track progress via an annual report delivered at future COPs. 

Ms Al Mubarak said: "The biodiversity and climate crises are closely connected, and Nature-based Solutions offer an effective way to address both of these crises at the same time. We made significant progress at COP27 in advancing the adoption of Nature-based Solutions, and these efforts were further boosted by the launch of ENACT, which help us accelerate meaningful integrated climate-biodiversity action worldwide.” 

During COP27, Ms. Al Mubarak also spoke at two major events focused on the critical link between the ocean, climate and biodiversity. 

The first event focused on highlighting progress on the Great Blue Wall initiative, a first-of-its-kind network of countries in the Western Indian Ocean region focused on conserving and restoring “seascapes” that help biodiversity recover while also providing sustainable incomes and helping to shelter communities from the impacts of climate change.  

Ms. Al Mubarak said: “The Western Indian Ocean region is feeling the impacts of climate change most acutely. It is inspiring to see leaders from this region standing up to the challenge, empowering local communities to create the Great Blue Wall together, become stewards of their local ecosystems and show a path towards a nature-positive future that the rest of the world can follow.”

At the Ocean Innovators Platform, hosted by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, Ms. Al Mubarak highlighted the importance of oceans:

“The Ocean is at the crossroads of all major challenges facing humanity today, and climate change and biodiversity loss are no exception. We must invest more in the Ocean - Our Blue Heart – as key to our sustainable world.”