Australian Environmental Grantmakers Network (AEGN)

Following the Global Nature Positive Summit, AEGN CEO Claire O'Rourke joined Rebecca Huntley (Director of Research at 89 Degrees East), Patrick (Paddy) O'Leary (CEO at Country Needs People) and James Trezise (Director at Biodiversity Council) at the annual Private Land Conservation Conference (PLC24) to workshop how we might shape a national narrative to scale action to protect and restore nature, on which we all rely on to thrive. Since 1960 in Australia alone, there have been 27 probable extinctions, including 23 animals and 4 plants. Over the past two centuries, Australia has lost more mammal species than any other continent, and continues to have one of the highest rates of species decline among countries in the OECD. Healthy, functioning biodiverse ecosystems underpin the wellbeing of people, of business and the economy, yet they remain in the blind spot of the average Australian. Communication sits at the heart of how people think, feel and vote.   Hosted by the Australian Land Conservation Alliance (ALCA), this year’s PLC24 theme 'Nature now: action for people and planet', held a sharp focus on the effective action that is required to halt and reverse the loss of nature. Which is fitting, given we have only five years left to reach the ambitious Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework target of protecting 30% (and restoring another 30%) of our land and water by 2030. Congratulations to ALCA and its members for charting the possibilities and pathways in this moment: https://lnkd.in/gEDgmuir Monica Haynes #PLC24 #NatureNow #Biodiversity 

What can philanthropy glean from the first Global Nature Positive Summit 2024 held this month?    - Achieving Nature Positive requires diverse alliances, innovative partnerships and collective effort, with an emphasis on First Nations leadership. Concerningly, as Leah Armstrong (Regional Manager - Australia at International Funders for Indigenous Peoples) told the summit, only 0.6% of global philanthropy support Indigenous Peoples, and the picture is the same here in Australia – with only 0.5% of philanthropic funding going to First Nations-led initiatives.    - Blended finance is key to achieving tangible outcomes that have longevity. Philanthropy is a critical layer in a funding stack, it can de-risk or leverage other finance from the public and private sector. Philanthropic investment capital can also support values-aligned projects.    - Philanthropic opportunities and solutions are multi-faceted, such as supporting NGO capacity (funding governance, leadership and admin to enable participation in nature finance models), funding social research to understand attitudes of everyday Australians and their appetite to choose products that aspire to be Nature Positive, as well as funding education campaigns that help consumers choose Nature Positive products.    - Aim high and start early. Supporting organisations that pursue high standards and transparency (including monitoring, reporting and verification) can ensure the best outcomes for nature, climate and people. Supporting market-readiness by providing seed funding for high integrity projects can help to test and trial new solutions to demonstrate proof of concept.    - Strong national environmental laws, standards and regulatory frameworks underpin environmental protection. Any Nature Positive goals will be undermined if governments continue to approve fossil fuel projects.   Liz Wren, Catherine Brown, Claire O'Rourke, Margie Jenkin, Tishiko King, Tanya Plibersek, Lisa Kate Miller, Karina West, Berry Liberman, Melissa Beaumont Lee 🐝, Robert McLean, Jeffrey Parrish, Eddie Game, Mike Roache, The Nature Conservancy    #Biodiversity #Philanthropy #GlobalNaturePositiveSummit #naturepositive #BlendedFinance  

Thinking differently about innovative finance for climate and nature. I am interested in bringing different sources of finance and funding together from my time in philanthropy and impact investment. Blended finance is an approach which uses different sources of catalytic finance during the start-up stage of a project or enterprise and private and institutional capital for scaling. I have had two great opportunities over the last week, which have confirmed my belief that blended finance can be an important tool to assist Australia’s climate transition and nature positive work. DFAT enabled Centre for Sustainability & Business at Melbourne Business School and Melbourne Climate Futures/FBE to host a Roundtable with Joan Larrea, Founding CEO of Convergence. Convergence is the global leader for blended finance approaches in developing countries. In many instances, development banks (for example, the Asian Development Bank through the Australian Climate Partnership) provide concessional loans or innovative finance approaches to attract private and institutional capital into large scale projects, such as wind farms, reforestation projects or major transport electrification projects. Some insights from the Roundtable: we need blended finance approaches to ‘scale the hec out of things!’ to accelerate our climate mitigation and adaptation projects. We need to grow the capability and confidence of Boards and Investment Committees around blended finance. Convergence is keen to encourage more local institutions to fund projects in our Asia Pacific Region. The Global Nature Positive Summit (and the side events that I attended hosted by the Australian Land Conservation Alliance and The Nature Conservancy) demonstrated that blended finance approaches are central to many nature conservation initiatives. I attended the Summit as Chair of AEGN (with CEO Claire O’Rourke and Nature Program Manager Margie Jenkin) and as Enterprise Professor with the Centre of Sustainability & Business at the Melbourne Business School (with Executive Director Gary Veale). It was great to hear about the partnership between Greening Australia and Conscious Investment Management to restore a 755-hectare project in the Snowy Monaro region using a combination of philanthropy and impact investment and the sale of Australian Carbon Credit Units through the environmental planting methodology ://https://lnkd.in/gMtyFuee The Nature Conservancy presented innovative financing projects including the protection of Gayini lands and water near Hay, which are now owned by the Nari Nari Tribal Council. The Global Nature Positive Summit provided an opportunity to learn about local nature conservation work. We visited Cockatoo Island where the Sydney Institute of Marine Science is working with the Sydney Harbour Trust to bring back fish species through providing Living Sea Walls. Fantastic work.

Starting the week by reflecting on the Global Nature Positive Summit 2024 held on Gadigal land. How might we ensure this agenda driven by Tanya Plibersek can deliver strong outcomes for reducing the causes of climate change and restoring the natural ecosytems that will help our planet heal faster and ensure communities are healthier? We’ve transgressed beyond six - yes six - of the nine planetary boundaries articulated by the PIK - Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and time is short to do what's required to change. We can’t advance climate action and reach our Paris commitments without also addressing nature conservation and repair - at least 30% of land and sea areas conserved by 2030 according to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. Messages at the Summit were clear: 🌳 First and foremost, we need to stop destroying nature. A colossal 70% of our wildlife species have been lost in my lifetime, since 1970. ☀ First Nations people must be front and centre, leading initiatives on their terms with equitable and durable outcomes. 🤝 Partnerships, collaboration, trust and transparency are key. ⌛️ It’s time to try new things, take some chances and really get cracking. The Summit provided an important opportunity to discuss philanthropy’s role in driving solutions, while reminding governments of their core responsibilities. Public and private finance, including philanthropy, can play different roles in accelerating action. Governments must lead with the strongest possible laws, to set high standards and rigorous transparency rules and deploying resources to make any new systems for nature restoration viable. Funding nature repair cannot be left to the market and philanthropy to support. Conversations matter, and I'm glad to see this challenging conversation begin here in Australia, with Australian Environmental Grantmakers Network (AEGN) members attending and hosting side events. #environmentaljustice #GlobalNaturePositiveSummit2024 #NaturePositiveSummit #philanthropy #biodiversity

The right to protest is fundamental to our democracy. Protests have been pivotal to many social movements and countless environmental victories throughout Australia’s history, keeping public attention on critical issues and building pressure for government and corporate action.       In recent years, there has been a concerning rise in anti-protest legislation across Australia, criminalising protests and maximising penalties for protestors. The laws have disproportionately targeted environmental defenders and people calling for climate action. These laws attempt to deter people from speaking out on issues that they care about.      This forensic examination of what’s been happening in the US provides insight into who is driving the anti-protest agenda and who benefits from the silencing of dissent. Here at home, The Human Rights Law Centre’s recent report ‘Protest in Peril’ shows these tactics are not isolated to the US https://lnkd.in/g3m6meFZ    Philanthropy plays an critical role in supporting organisations who are working tirelessly to protect our right to protest, so people in local communities are free to call for climate action and environmental justice - which will make all the difference to the future of generations to come and countless species that are under threat of extinction.    #righttoprotest #climateaction #humanrights  #environmentaljustice   

What a fantastic turn out for the New York Climate Week COP31 event hosted by our friends at Groundswell Giving and AEGN members Graeme Wood Foundation and the Myer Family Foundation. Thanks to Anna Cerneaz and Leanne Minshull for hosting the evening and to special guests Widjabul Wiabal/Bundjalung woman and inspiring leader Larissa Baldwin-Roberts (CEO, GetUp), proud Kulkalaig woman Tishiko King (Advocate, Climate and Ocean) and Lord Fatafehi Fakafanua, Speaker of the Tongan Legislative Assembly. The panel imagined what might be possible if Australia (the third largest exporter of fossil fuels) and the Pacific host the international climate meeting Conference of Parties, COP31 in 2026. The possibilities were both compelling and exciting - a transformational opportunity to accelerate climate ambition in our backyard and beyond, recognising the ongoing leadership of advocates and governments across the Pacific Islands, who secured the Paris Agreement's 1.5 degree goal. COP31 must be deliver tangible actions for Australia to exit fossil fuels and ensure justice for First Nations and Pasifika peoples. Anna invited others to join the COP31 campaign ‘as many tributaries make a mighty river’ and there’s no time to waste. Eytan Lenko Jane Thomas John Hepburn Arielle Gamble Meg Argyriou Jamie Hanson Margie Jenkin #NewYorkClimateWeek #COP31 #ClimateAction

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek this week approved the vast expansion of three significant coal mines, locking in millions of tonnes of carbon pollution, which will result in simply devastating outcomes for all of us. The fact that such damaging projects can be approved shows just how inadequate current laws are to address the scale and urgency of the climate and nature crises, best demonstrated by climate impact scholar and winner of the Environmental Nobel Prize Johan Rockström in this eye-opening TED talk. If you haven't watched this before, take a deep breath and go there: we must not look away. We require strong laws backed by political will to urgently phase out fossil fuels and invest in credible, transparent nature-based solutions. The upcoming Global Nature Positive Summit in Sydney is an opportunity to plan the urgent action, and I look forward to joining these discussions and exploring the role philanthropy can play in restoring nature. More on the announcement here: https://lnkd.in/g_zyN-JH   #ClimateAction #NaturePositiveSummit #GlobalNaturePositiveSummit2024 #Philanthropy #Biodiversity

Imagine a world where every investment creates ripples of positive change. This is a vision shared by our friend and collaborator Hayley Morris, guide for our upcoming Journey to Impact program this October. As a Director of her family office, Hayley leads her family’s philanthropy and impact investments through the Morris Family Foundation, with a strong focus on climate change and regenerative food systems. She's co-founded several purpose driven organisations, including the non-profit Sustainable Table, climate tech business Climate Zero and strategic sustainability consultancy Rewild Agency. She's held various not-for-profit board roles including the Australian Environmental Grantmakers Network (AEGN), The Impact Club and The Next Economy. Hayley is a legend, and we’re so excited for her to share her invaluable wisdom with you. Whether you're a wealth holder, a next-gen changemaker, or stewarding capital for an organisation, join a community of like-minded people ready to make a difference. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gh-E5c9M Secure your spot: https://lnkd.in/ggSA3f4V #impactinvesting #wealthalignment #values #purpose #impact

"Not only can we make a significant dent on global emissions, but we’re going to be paid handsomely for doing so. We have a combination of success factors like no other country – but our advantages shrink as others leap ahead.”   In delivering the recent 2024 Manning Clark Lecture, AEGN Board member Simon Holmes à Court reveals why an urgent energy transition is essential to not only help secure a safe climate, but also for Australia to capitalise on a unique moment in time:   "An exciting future beckons. The urgency of the transition propels us forward. And with our ingenuity, our resources and this new political landscape, we have everything needed to grasp this opportunity. If we do so, not only will we being doing our fair share of securing a safe climate, we’ll be helping others to do theirs, while enriching the lives of Australians for generations to come.”   View video >> https://lnkd.in/gYPnGvXA   #RenewableEnergy #CleanEnergy #EnergyTransition #ElectrifyEverything

"Holding Cop31 in Australia, in conjunction with the Pacific, will invite the rest of the world to our country. Most will come with an ambition to transition to clean, renewable energy in order to safeguard the lives, homes and livelihoods of people worldwide. Used well, this demonstration of genuine commitment to secure a safe climate could provide our government with the political will and personal strength they will need to stand up to the fossil fuel industry." Powerful words from Australian Environmental Grantmakers Network (AEGN) member and excellent human I'm proud to know, Anna Cerneaz. It's imperative that we turn our attention and collective efforts to the opportunity that COP31 presents, now. We must set an agenda that's aligned with what the science requires to tackle #climatechange. If we don't, we'll see vested interests in polluting industries set it for us. Thinking about what your role could be in shaping a truly impactful COP31? Let's talk! https://lnkd.in/g79KYmZS