Carney pledges $560M to Brazil-led fund to protect rainforests
Canada has pledged up to $560 million over four years to protect rainforests as part of a project co-led by Brazil and Norway.
Funding is part of a $6-billion fund promised by Ottawa in support for international climate finance
Racy Rafique · CBC News
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Canada has pledged up to $560 million over four years to protect rainforests as part of a project co-led by Brazil and Norway.
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the commitment during a meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit on Sunday in Manila, the Philippines.
The money is part of a $6-billion fund promised by Ottawa this spring in support for international climate finance and part of Canada's broader pledge to provide more than $13 billion in international climate finance to developing countries by 2031, says a statement from the Prime Minister's Office.
The Tropical Forests Forever Facility, launched at the COP30 climate summit in Brazil last year, aims to grow to $125 billion, with about $100 billion in investments from the private sector.
The facility would support forest conservation in more than 70 countries, aiming to protect more than one billion hectares of tropical forest annually, with conservation payments tied to verified results. At least 20 per cent of those payments will go to Indigenous people and local communities.
Canada said the contribution would help the fund to reach fundraising targets needed to begin operations and attract further public and private investment.
The pledge comes as Carney has faced criticism from some environmental advocates and opposition parties over his government's rollback of some environmental policies. He's also faced criticism for failing to attend the last two UN climate summits.
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"Canadians have always understood our responsibility to protect nature — both in our own backyard and around the world," said the prime minister in the statement.
"At a time when the world needs leadership, Canada is stepping up with our partners to pioneer a new approach that makes conservation economically viable and mobilises private investment at scale. Tropical forests are among the most vital ecosystems on Earth. Protecting them is essential to halting biodiversity loss, stabilising our climate, and safeguarding the well-being of communities everywhere."
Through an interpreter, Lula described the money as investments that will yield a profit and not "donations, money for free."
Carney and Lula also discussed cooperation in trade, critical minerals, energy and defence, the statement said.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Racy Rafique is a producer for CBC's national television program Power & Politics. She also works as a writer covering federal politics for CBC's parliamentary bureau from time to time. Racy was a 2023 CBC Joan Donaldson Scholar and is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University. You can reach her at racy.rafique@cbc.ca.
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