Forests, grasslands, peatlands and other terrestrial ecosystems are essential to life on Earth. They provide homes for wildlife, store carbon, sustain livelihoods, purify water and supply food, medicine and other resources people depend on. But agricultural expansion, direct exploitation, pollution and other human pressures are putting these benefits — and human well-being — at risk while intensifying the climate and biodiversity crises.

Yet despite what’s at stake, global efforts to conserve these ecosystems are largely moving backward. New data from Systems Change Lab finds that not one of 26 indicators is on track to meet key climate, biodiversity and equity targets for 2030, and eight are heading in the wrong direction entirely. What will it take to change course?

Join us on Tuesday, October 27, to hear from leading experts on what's driving these trends and where action needs to accelerate. Speakers will explore the systems change needed to make progress last — including balancing competing demands on land, aligning finance with conservation, and ensuring solutions are equitable and benefit the communities who depend on these ecosystems and species most. 

Speakers

Research Insights:

  • Sophie Boehm, Senior Research Associate, Systems Change Lab, World Resources Institute 
  • Raychel Santo, Senior Food and Climate Research Associate, World Resources Institute 

Panel Discussion:

  • Cristián Samper, Managing Director and Leader of Nature Solutions, the Bezos Earth Fund (moderator) 
  • Frances Seymour, Senior Policy Advisor, Woodwell Climate Research Center 
  • Éliane Ubalijoro, Chief Executive Officer, Landscape Alliance  
  • Minnie Degawan, Managing Director, FSC Indigenous Foundation 
  • Bernardo Strassburg, Founder and Executive Director of Science, International Institute for Sustainability 

The discussion will be informed by the six critical shifts needed to conserve terrestrial ecosystems:

Cover image by Steven Kamenar/Unsplash