Global Centre on Biodiversity for Climate: policy information
Published 24 May 2023
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The Global Centre on Biodiversity for Climate (GCBC) is an international research and development programme that funds research into natural solutions to climate change and poverty.
The GCBC was announced by Lord Goldsmith at the 26th Conference of the Parties to the United National Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP26) with £40 million of UK official development assistance funding.
Aims of the programme
Through a series of research grant calls the GCBC will establish a global network of research institutions and experts to address critical research gaps in how the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity can address climate solutions and improve livelihoods.
The research delivered through the GCBC will:
- improve resilience to climate impacts, support sustainable livelihoods and economic opportunities, and reduce carbon emissions and biodiversity loss
- foster collaboration between experts and research disciplines to inform policy and unlock finance for biodiversity-based solutions to climate change and poverty
- be based on local need and incorporate strong engagement from Indigenous Peoples and local communities
- identify and disseminate policy-relevant good practice which can be scaled up and replicated
- deliver on our international climate and biodiversity commitments and implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Background
In 2023 the world reaches the halfway point of the SDGs but progress is significantly off track and the world is facing a dual climate and biodiversity crisis. With global warming already at 1.1°C and predicted to reach at least 1.5°C between 2030 and 2052, we can expect a higher frequency of extreme temperatures, drought, and extreme weather events.
At the same time around 25% of plant and animal species are threatened by human actions, with a million species facing extinction. The impacts will make delivery of the SDGs more difficult, and they will hit the poorest first and hardest.
The GCBC will help to address this by funding research into how the conservation and sustainable and equitable use of biodiversity can help address climate change and improve livelihoods of some of the world’s most vulnerable populations.
Thematic and geographical focus
The GCBC will launch a series of grant calls each focused on a different thematic area or areas of research. We expect these to address issues relating to:
- key pressures causing serious negative impacts to livelihoods, nature and climate such as agriculture and food systems, and natural resource management
- enablers of change – instruments, data, incentives, finance and governance – required to benefit livelihoods, nature and climate
- evidence gaps the targeting of which will increase uptake of solutions and interventions to address the causes and consequences of poverty, biodiversity loss and climate change
The geographic focus of the GCBC’s research will be Official Development Assistance-eligible countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, and South East Asia and the Pacific.
Programme structure
Defra anticipates GCBC-funded research being delivered by a diverse range of local and international delivery partners including research institutes and universities, non-governmental organisations, community and civil society groups, and the private sector.
Commercial partners will be awarded grants through open research grant competitions administered by the Fund Manager.
Defra has procured DAI Global to administer the GCBC as Fund Manager, responsible for activities including:
- administrating research grant competitions
- sharing knowledge and learning generated by the GCBC
- managing grant agreements with successful applicants
- monitoring and reporting on research grant agreement delivery
- evidence collation and aggregation, and learning from research outputs
Defra has appointed the Royal Botanic Gardens (RBG), Kew, as the GCBC’s Strategic Science Lead. RBG Kew will bring together interdisciplinary research experts to develop the GCBC’s ongoing research strategy, identify priorities for the research grant competitions and conduct inter-disciplinary analysis in support of the research outputs from GCBC funded projects.
Defra is also supported by:
- an Independent Evaluator which will be responsible for evaluating the GCBC process, performance, and impact
- an Evidence Advisory Group, comprising experts from a diverse range of backgrounds and geographies to provide independent advice and scrutiny on the design, scope, outputs, and overall strategic direction of the GCBC
Contact
Go to the GCBC website for more information about the GCBC and the research grant competitions.