Leaves 27 (12) - December 2025

        Newsletter of the
         INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENT FORUM
         Volume 27, Number 12 --- 15 December 2025

Website: iefworld.org
Article submission: newsletter@iefworld.org Deadline next issue 10 January 2026
Secretariat Email: ief@iefworld.org Christine Muller General Secretary 
Postal address: 12B Chemin de Maisonneuve, CH-1219 Chatelaine, Geneva, Switzerland
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From the Editor, Request for information for upcoming newsletters

This newsletter is an opportunity for IEF members to share their experiences, activities, and  initiatives that are taking place at the community level on environment, climate change  and sustainability. All members are welcome to contribute information about related  activities, upcoming conferences, news from like-minded organizations, recommended  websites, book reviews, etc. Please send information to newsletter@iefworld.org.

Please share the Leaves newsletter and IEF membership  information with family, friends and associates, and encourage interested persons to consider  becoming a member of the IEF.

Newsletter Content

Much has been happening with IEF and in the world at large! 
This newsletter reports about the IEF General Assembly – the once-a-year meeting when all members are getting together to consult about IEF’s paths forward - and about the IEF Board election.

Several articles report and/or reflect on COP30, the international climate conference held in Brazil a month ago. 
We will start with an article by IEF President Arthur Dahl which begins by putting COP30 into its ecological and historical context.
The Baha’i International Community actively contributed to the conference by infusing ethical perspectives emphasizing our shared responsibility that includes the well-being of future generations. This BIC story is next, followed by personal reflections on the conference by IEF member Monica Maghami who served on the BIC delegation.

The next articles focus on action, starting with the thoughts of IEF Board Member Sylvia Karlsson-Vinkhuyzen about “Can the Sustainable Development Goals help us collaborate more?” 
A very helpful tool for communities is “Resilience Science Must-Knows: A Guide for Decision-Makers” – a resource for social action worth reading and keeping!
Adaptation to climate change impacts is becoming increasingly important. That is the topic of IEF associate Shamsideen Olawunmi Sebiotimo on “From Farms to Future: Climate-Smart Agriculture as Africa’s Survival Strategy."
Read about Worldwide Lights for Peace next which is calling on people worldwide to participate in a joint candlelight event for tolerance, environmental protection, and world peace on April 6, 2026. 
Under “Items of Interest”, you find a brief announcement about the recent publication of a paper by IEF member Austin Bowden-Kerby and a link to an article about the appointment of a new principal representative of the Bahá’í International Community.

Members Corner

Report of IEF 29th General Assembly

The General Assembly took place on 29 November 2025 with 8 participants at the first meeting and 16 at the second one, with three participants attending twice. Altogether, there were 21 participants from 12 countries. IEF President Arthur Dahl chaired both meetings. A major topic of discussion was the pros and cons of in-person, virtual and hybrid conferences.
See the report of the General Assembly here: https://iefworld.org/genass29.

Election of the IEF Board

Members voted by email on 15 – 27 November 2025. The tellers were IEF members Michael Richards and Diana Cartwright, and volunteer Carmel Momen. The IEF warmly thanks them for their service.
30 ballots were cast, all ballots were valid, one vote was invalid because the person voted for was not an IEF member. 56 people received 1 or more votes.
The Governing Board for the coming year consists of Arthur Dahl (Switzerland), Christine Muller (USA), Sylvia Karlsson-Vinkhuyzen (Netherlands), Laurent Mesbah (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Victoria Thoresen (Norway), Wendi Momen (UK), Halldór Thorgeirsson (Iceland), the same as last year.
The IEF Board then elected Arthur Dahl as president and Christine Muller as general secretary.
The Board is currently in session. Among other things it is consulting about the suggestions offered by members during the General Assembly and about offering the IEF Sustainable Development course as a free online class in 2026.

Confrontation in Belém

The planet is already well into an unfolding climate change crisis that is imposing rapidly growing costs: financial, social and environmental, on an increasingly fragile global human system. We are totally interconnected through technology and trade without any equivalent effective global governance. The thirtieth Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP30) in Belém, Brazil, 10-22 November 2025, clearly illustrates the present paralysis that we face between two extremes: protecting business-as-usual for those with wealth and power, or making a rapid transformation in governance to correspond to this new global reality that we are one human family.

The planet is telling us that there is no time to lose. Extreme weather events and associated impacts: storms, floods, drought, excessive heat, forest fires, landslides, rising seas, dying coral reefs, collapsing biodiversity, etc. are undermining the life-supporting capacity of the planet to meet our most fundamental needs. We are already overshooting some tipping points beyond which positive feedbacks accelerate an irreversible decline. The science says we need to immediately reverse course and we have only a decade before our future wellbeing will be threatened and the costs to adapt greatly increased, by some estimates up to half of global GDP in the decades ahead. Emissions of greenhouse gases must fall by half by 2030 compared to 2010 levels, and reach net zero by mid-century.

AMBITIONS AT COP30

Given the urgency of keeping 1.5°C within reach, a Global Stocktake was intended to bridge the chasm between the cuts in carbon emissions needed and those being pledged. This meant strengthening the weak Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) required by the Paris Agreement now that we have already broken the 1.5°C threshold.

One tool was to be a Transition Away from Fossil Fuels (TAFF) Roadmap. More than 80 countries from Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Pacific joined with EU member states and the UK to call for a clear plan for phasing out fossil fuels. By building trust in climate finance, the hope was that money would flow. A Global Goal for Adaptation was to provide a just transition to lift up communities rather than deepen inequality. Justice was to be the starting point, not an afterthought. Indigenous peoples hoped for their direct participation in negotiations, such as already agreed in the Convention on Biological Diversity. 

A week-long parallel “people’s summit” in the Amazonian city brought together 70,000 people, including 23,000 registered participants from more than 65 countries. It called for an end to the privatisation, commodification, and financialisation of common goods and public services that directly contradict popular interests. It recognised air, forests, water, land, minerals, and energy sources as “common goods of the people”, and demanded the demarcation and protection of indigenous lands and territories, with an end to deforestation. It promoted the implementation of popular agrarian reform and agroecology, the fight against environmental racism and the construction of just cities and vibrant peripheries through the implementation of environmental policies and solutions. These hopes were far from the interests of the negotiators.

RESULTS OF COP30

The results of COP30 fell far below these expectations. While coming close to collapse, the talks finally delivered a deal, showing that multilateral cooperation between 194 states can work even in a world in geopolitical turmoil. But the final text made no mention of fossil fuels. On the emissions gap, only weaker measures were agreed, with an “accelerator” programme to address the shortfall which will report back at next year’s COP. One step forward was to agree to triple adaptation finance to $120bn a year by 2035, five years later than originally envisaged. There was consensus on the operational procedures for the Loss and Damage Fund. The ocean was finally recognised as a vital part of climate solutions, central to climate mitigation, adaptation, and stabilization.

One significant advance was the agreement to a Just Transition Mechanism, the purpose of which will be to enhance international cooperation, technical assistance, capacity-building and knowledge sharing, and enable equitable, inclusive, just transitions. This plan agreed by all nations will ensure that the move to a green economy around the world takes place fairly and protects the rights of all people, including workers, women and indigenous people, but with no funding provided. It will include a permanent institutional arrangement under the UNFCCC to support countries in their efforts towards a transition away from fossil fuels.

Continue reading this article here: https://iefworld.org/Dahl_COP30 

BIC highlights ethics, future generations, and shared responsibility

What kind of motivation can compel implementation of difficult decisions required to address climate change, not only today but for generations to come? This question lay at the heart of contributions from the Bahá’í International Community (BIC) at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), held in Belém, Brazil, where over 50,000 participants gathered to examine the gap between climate commitments and their implementation.

In reflections shared with the Bahá’í World News Service following the conference, Daniel Perell, a representative of BIC’s New York Office, observed that many of the polarizing debates are gradually shifting to addressing more complex questions of how humanity can act together.

A group photo of forum attendees and panelists, Image credit: BIC

Mr. Perell, together with seven other BIC delegates from Australia, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and the United States, participated in a range of discussions in the conference, as well as in off-site events across Belém.

One of the conference’s distinctive features was the Global Ethical Stocktake (GES), a new initiative of the COP30 Presidency that invited individuals and institutions around the world to consider the ethical dimensions of climate change. 
(Note from the editor: IEF members have contributed substantially for the GES dialogues in advance of COP30. Read about that here: https://iefworld.org/GlobalEthicalStocktake) 

At the GES pavilion, the BIC co-hosted a forum titled “The Role of Faith Communities in Building an Ethic of Care and Climate Justice,” which drew on global experiences in community-building endeavors.

In his remarks at that forum, Mr. Perell spoke about widening humanity’s sense of solidarity, recognizing that today’s decisions shape the possibilities available to future generations. “Urgent action actually requires long-term thinking and a long-term approach, looking at future generations and our responsibility to them,” he said.

Mr. Perell contrasted approaches that rely mainly on financial incentives with the kind of motivation seen within families, where people act for the sake of their children and grandchildren out of love and moral responsibility. Bringing such ethical considerations into climate discussions, he suggested, can unlock deeper stores of courage and perseverance.

Questions of concern for the collective wellbeing of humanity were also at the center of an official side event titled “From Principles to Policy: National Pathways for Addressing Loss and Damage,” co-hosted by the BIC and the government of Vanuatu.

Addressing loss and damage requires more than technical mechanisms, noted Vahíd Vahdat of the Brazilian Bahá’í Office of External Affairs. “We will only be able to face these challenges if we also draw on our best qualities as a civilization,” he said.

Mr. Vahdat emphasized the need to combine scientific analysis with dialogue, trust, and a recognition that humanity is one family. The event examined how communities might develop holistic approaches to climate challenges, looking at vulnerabilities alongside capacities and aspirations, and ensuring that local populations can identify challenges, analyze circumstances, and take collective action. This view, Mr. Vahdat stated, sees people as protagonists of social change and resilience rather than mere victims.

Beyond the official conference site, discussions further explored topics of ethics and motivation at a TED forum titled “The climate crisis is a spiritual crisis: A multifaith Global Ethical Stocktake.”

Moderated by Nika Sinai of the Australian Bahá’í Office of External Affairs, the discussion brought together representatives of different faith traditions and civil society groups to examine how principles and values such as justice, compassion, and truthfulness can inspire courageous decisions, and how scientific knowledge and spiritual insight can be understood as complementary systems of knowledge that together can guide effective climate action.

“Reducing emissions requires the technical solutions we are familiar with, but it also requires a sense of compassion and justice to understand that our choices as emitters and consumers of energy ripple across the earth and impact both our fellow human beings and the planet that we share,” Ms. Sinai said. “Therefore, we combine these two complementary systems of knowledge—science and religion—in our efforts to resolve the climate crisis.”

For reading the entire article and seeing more pictures, go here: https://news.bahai.org/story/1841/cop30-bic-highlights-ethics-future-generations-shared-responsibility 

Reflections from Belem

What an exciting experience to be at COP30 Brazil, an exhilarating and meaningful summit, hosted by Brazil, my birth country!
Being here was more than attending a global climate conference, it was witnessing a profound expression of humanity’s collective search for justice, unity, interdependence and moral leadership. This was a call to action echoing across every pavilion, every discussion, every initiative.

From the Global Ethical Stocktake, TED Countdown, UK Pavilion, Brazil Pavilion Agrizone Agriculture implements, OAB SP, COP30 Brazil Women, blue and green zones, specific topics were intertwined in the areas of ethics, sustainability, technology, policies and legal mechanisms to enable the implementation of a common framework through the Paris Agreement and SDGs, where each part is required to perform its role for the whole to function with interconnectedness and meaning.

My 10 Key Takeaways from COP30 Brazil so far: 

• Justice systems are not inherently just 
  Law depends on science and we still have a path to go to fully support the law in addressing climate realities.
• There is no sustainable future without the protagonism of women 
  Women live climate change as part of their daily realities. We are system shapers.  
• Digital transformation requires Collective thinking 
  We only solve problems when we think, truly think, together.
• The global ethical stock take (GES) puts communities at the center It starts not from the economy, but by asking each community what they value and need, weaving regional voices into global action.
• AI for agriculture can uplift and tire ecosystems 
  Farmers can benefit through a regional and global architecture built on partnership and shared learning, whilst local realities are assessed and taken into consideration.
• When we as individuals, communities and institutions are not capable of solving climate related problems 
  Accountability paired with litigation remain as alternative paths.
• There is no known economic case for climate justice, but an ethical one 
  We cannot capitalise our way to fairness. This is the moment to act and implement from our highest nature.
• Intergenerational understanding must guide climate narratives 
  Maps, data, and stories must reflect the continuity between past, present, and future.
• Boundaries need to be an instrument of peace 
  How can we build the foundation, walls and roof with front line communities to keep the whole home safe?
• At cop 30 the global stock take (GST) should guide the action agenda 
  To translate findings into concrete commitments for mitigation, adaptation, and technology.
  Leading with values, innovating with purpose, and building a future where sustainability and dignity are not aspirations, but realities. 
  The path to climate justice is a shared journey, and each of us has a role in shaping the future we all hope to inherit. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7397169644589043712/ 

Can the Sustainable Development Goals help us collaborate more?

Can the Sustainable Development Goals help us collaborate more? Does it help to have this kind of global normative framework to help actors – such as public officials in county ministries or intergovernmental organizations, civil society organizations or corporations – to reach out and do the unusual thing – to genuinely collaborate across the traditional boundaries of a sector or governance level? This was for me the underlying question for the stakeholder workshop we held in Nairobi this week in the context of our research project on governing SDG interactions in East Africa.

Designed and so ably implemented by our Kenyan PhD students Gitundu Rachel, Charles Tonui, Annita Kirwa and postdocs Nowella Anyango-van Zwieten and Eric Magale, PhD, the workshop provided an opportunity for Kenyan stakeholders, particularly working on SDG2 (zero hunger) linked to the dairy sector, to both learn from the ongoing research and to contribute by validating the results, filling gaps and together co-create ideas for improving collaboration.

The hashtag#SDGs with their comprehensive coverage of what humanity wants to see in a future better world puts the searchlight on the ever more growing interdependence in our societies – between goals, sectors and the pathways leading to them, pathways that we are increasingly learning that we need to tread collaboratively, breaking the old silos of bounded mindsets, institutional structures and ways of doing things. We can look at the SDGs as that ‘excuse’ to rethink our old ways – and learn more about how what I am passionate about achieving is intertwined with the goals of those of my neighbors (in the next office or the other side of the world). Sometimes our goals may be partly antagonistic – and then we need a deep dialogue on how to rethink them in the context of interdependence. Oftentimes the goals are synergistic, and coordination and collaboration will significantly speed on their achievement.

But I suspect that most often it is in the ‘how’ we work towards our goals that the deep synergies lie. It is here that the value of the somewhat unwieldy, yet so important, hashtag#SDG16 comes to the fore. Without promoting “peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels” how far can we get? We need to learn to work in inclusive ways that builds trust and accountability – across institutions and between institutions, communities and citizens.

Resilience Science Must-Knows: A Guide for Decision-Makers

Source: FutureEarth https://futureearth.org/2025/11/03/resilience-science-must-knows-a-guide-for-decision-makers/ 

Our world is changing faster than before. For communities, governments, and businesses, the question is no longer if crises will strike but how prepared they will be to respond to them and transform.

In this turbulent moment, a new report, Resilience Science Must-Know, offers a roadmap. For the first time, decades of research have been distilled into nine essential insights to help decision-makers navigate uncertainty, strengthen societies, and safeguard both people and the planet.

Developed by Future Earth, the Global Resilience Partnership, Stockholm Resilience Centre, and partners worldwide, the report comes ahead of COP30 with a clear message: resilience must be central to how we make decisions about our shared future.

The Resilience Science Must-Knows turns years of research into practical insights that help leaders and communities plan for change, respond to crises, and build stronger, fairer societies.

Rather than simply returning to normal after a shock, the Must-Knows encourage us to evolve — to adapt, learn, and find new ways to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

“Resilience is not about bouncing back to business as usual,” Albert Norström, science director at the Earth Commission and co-lead of the report. “It’s about learning from crises, keeping options open, and enabling societies to transform toward fairer, more sustainable futures.”

The report also shows that resilience isn’t just about the environment or the economy — it’s about how everything connects. Climate, biodiversity, and development are deeply linked, and preparing for the future means addressing inequality, encouraging innovation, and making fairness and justice part of every decision.

“A healthy planet is a defining economic and social imperative,” adds Fatima Denton, co-chair of the Earth Commission and contributor to the report. “It’s not an environmental add-on. It’s the foundation of human well-being and justice.”

The Nine Must-Knows 

1. Navigate accelerating risk – Build pathways toward more just and sustainable futures. 
2. Cope, adapt, and transform – Resilience is more than bouncing back; it’s about evolving. 
3. Invest today – benefit tomorrow – Strengthen the foundations of long-term well-being and prosperity. 
4. Cultivate continuous learning and innovation – Experiment, learn, and innovate continuously. 
5. Foster diversity in all its forms – Diversity supports persistence, adaptation, and transformation. 
6. Nurture relationships – Strong connections enhance the flow of knowledge, resources, and trust. 
7. Govern and negotiate trade-offs – Manage trade-offs to avoid harm, prevent conflict, and build lasting resilience. 
8. Empower agency – Enable people and institutions to take intentional, grounded action. 
9. Address power imbalances – Confront inequalities and historical injustices to reduce vulnerability.

To learn more and/or download the report, go here: https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/research-projects/resilience-science-must-knows.html 

From Farms to Future: Climate-Smart Agriculture as Africa’s Survival Strategy

Introduction 
Africa’s farms are on the frontline of climate change. Rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, prolonged droughts, and devastating floods are threatening food production across the continent. In Nigeria, farmers are already experiencing lower yields and increasing risks of crop failure, putting millions at risk of hunger. With agriculture employing more than half of Africa’s workforce, the question is no longer whether we can adapt — but how. One of the most promising answers lies in Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA).

What Is Climate-Smart Agriculture? 
Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) refers to a set of farming practices and innovations that aim to: 
1. Increase productivity and ensure food security. 
2. Enhance resilience to climate risks such as droughts and floods. 
3. Reduce greenhouse gas emissions from farming activities. 

Examples of CSA include: 
• Planting drought-tolerant and early-maturing crop varieties. 
• Using efficient irrigation methods like drip irrigation. 
• Practicing agroforestry (planting trees alongside crops). 
• Adopting soil management techniques such as organic composting.

For Africa, where rain-fed farming dominates, these approaches are critical to ensuring survival and long-term growth in agriculture.

Benefits of CSA for Africa 
CSA is not just a concept — it is already showing results across the continent. 
• Food Security: Farmers adopting improved seed varieties and better irrigation methods have seen higher yields, even during erratic rainfall seasons. 
• Economic Resilience: By diversifying crops and using climate-smart techniques, smallholder farmers reduce losses and improve income stability. 
• Environmental Sustainability: Practices like agroforestry and soil conservation reduce deforestation and restore degraded lands. 
• Local Success Stories: In Ebonyi State, Nigeria, farmers are integrating organic matter and legumes into their soils, improving fertility and resilience. Meanwhile, projects like LINKS Nigeria are introducing rice intensification techniques in northern regions, boosting productivity while reducing water use. 

Challenges to Scaling CSA 
Despite its promise, CSA adoption in Africa faces several obstacles: 
• Limited Funding: Many smallholder farmers cannot afford improved seeds, irrigation systems, or modern tools. 
• Knowledge Gaps: A lack of training and awareness prevents many farmers from adopting CSA practices. 
• Policy Weaknesses: Without strong government support, extension services, and infrastructure, scaling CSA is slow. 
• Technology Barriers: Access to innovations like AI-driven advisory tools is still limited in rural areas.

However, international organizations, NGOs, and governments are beginning to close these gaps by investing in training programs, financial support, and farmer-led initiatives.

Conclusion: The Path Forward 
Africa’s agricultural future depends on its ability to adapt to a changing climate. Climate-Smart Agriculture is not just a survival strategy — it is a roadmap to food security, economic stability, and environmental sustainability. For farmers, policymakers, and communities, the message is clear: investing in CSA today is investing in Africa’s tomorrow. If embraced widely, CSA could turn Africa’s greatest challenge — climate change — into an opportunity for transformation, resilience, and growth.

Worldwide Lights for Peace

The non-profit organization Hiking for Peace is calling on people worldwide to participate in a joint candlelight event for tolerance, environmental protection, and world peace on April 6, 2026. Under the motto “Peace Wave Festival,” fires will be lit around the world on this day, candles will be lit in homes and places of worship, seas of light will be created in public spaces, and candlelight processions will be organized.

Interested parties are invited to register as soon as possible on the official website www.peacewavefestival.org and thus make a visible statement for a peaceful and sustainable future. The goal is to bring together over 1,000 registered light events by April 6, 2026. Currently (as of October 2025), 141 light events have already been registered worldwide – organized by civilians as well as Protestant, Catholic, Buddhist, Bahá’í, and indigenous communities. Discussions with Muslim and Jewish communities are also underway, and confirmations are expected shortly.

“We must believe together in a new era in which peaceful coexistence, an end to poverty and hunger, and the preservation of nature are possible. Together, we can use the lights to send a powerful message that politicians around the world cannot ignore,” explains Isabella Haschke, founder of the movement.

The association calls on governments worldwide to become more determined in mediating peace and ending armed conflicts. By cutting military spending, urgently needed financial resources could be used for social justice, education, poverty reduction, and environmental protection. 

Continue reading this article here: https://www.pressenza.com/2025/10/worldwide-lights-for-peace/ 

Source: https://www.pressenza.com/author/pressenza-wien/ 

Items of Interest

Report from IEF Member Austin Bowden-Kerby on Dead corals in Tuvalu published

IEF member Austin Bowden-Kerby wrote a report about the extreme loss of corals in Tuvalu, an island nation in the mid-Pacific consisting entirely of atolls, rings of coral reefs and islets around a large lagoon, but no more than a few metres above sea level. See his excellent report with beautiful pictures here.
You can also find it on the IEF website: https://iefworld.org/Tuvalu_coral 

New Principal Representative of the Bahá’í International Community appointed

BIC NEW YORK — The Bahá’í International Community (BIC) has announced the appointment of Rachel Bayani as its new Principal Representative to the United Nations, following the retirement of Bani Dugal, who had served in this capacity since 2003.
With United Nations (UN) offices in New York and Geneva and regional offices in Addis Ababa, Brussels, Cairo, and Jakarta, the BIC represents the global Bahá’í community at the international level, contributing to prevalent discourses essential to the future and wellbeing of humanity.
Read the article here: https://news.bahai.org/story/1840/bic-new-york-new-principal-representative-bahai-international-community-appointed