First reservoir of terrestrial biodiversity, forests are, along with land, a formidable lever for climate regulation. Deforestation from agriculture causes nearly a quarter of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and an accelerated loss of biodiversity. The FFEM addresses together the forest and agricultural territories, intimately linked. For 30 years, the FFEM has supported innovative solutions with 105 projects financed on forests and agricultural land and an amount of €144 million committed.

The first Buildings and Climate Global Forum, co-organised by France and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is running from Thursday 7 to Friday 8 March. This event will welcome global players to the Palais des Congrès in Paris. The Forum follows the successful launch of the Buildings Breakthrough initiative during COP28. This initiative - supported by 28 governments and the European Commission, among others - aims to make resilient, nearly zero-emission buildings the new normal by 2030.

Thursday 30th November marked the start of the 28th UN Conference of the Parties on climate change in Dubai - an opportunity to review FFEM-supported projects and its integrated strategy for tackling current and future environmental challenges.

In january 2023, the FFEM published its new strategy 2023-2026 and defined its new priority themes for the environment and development. FFEM has since published five brochures showcasing its various areas of intervention in each of these domains along with its current flagship projects.

The International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, celebrated annually on 9 August, provides an important opportunity to highlight the challenges facing these communities all over the world. With an estimated population of between 370 and 500 million, indigenous peoples make up over half of the world’s cultural diversity and play a crucial role in ecosystem preservation, particularly in the Amazon region.

The BRIDGE project Steering Committee (COPIL) was held in the FFEM’s offices from 19 to 21 April 2023. The event brought together all the project partners for a progress report and discussions on the project's future.

To mark the International Day for Biological Diversity, we provide an update on the Chimanimani project. This project has been supported by the FFEM and AFD for the past 3 years to work on sustainable management combining the conservation of natural and cultural resources with the socio-economic development of the region.

Chair of the FFEM Steering Committee, Christophe Bories, looks back on the period 2019-2022 and its defining moments, and comments on the challenges the FFEM should address over the next four years.

Re-financed to the tune of €132 million for 2023-2026, the FFEM has a new strategy and is setting out its priority directions.
This new FFEM strategy is the result of close consultation with its member institutions, its own Scientific and Technical Committee and secretariat, while also reflecting discussions with stakeholders from civil society and research communities. It presents the FFEM, its strategic objectives and its new priority themes, and summarises how to submit a project to the FFEM.

The Essential Services Unit (ESU) for Loubassa village, located on M’bamou island in the Republic of the Congo, was brought on stream on 15 October 2021. The ESU's special technical feature is that its electrical power comes from a floating tidal stream generator, converting the Congo River’s energy into electricity. Supported by the Pot@maï association, the Congolese NGO Aide à l’enfance and L'Aquaphile, ESU offers an innovative off-grid electrification approach. The services offered through electrification were selected by the villagers, and a training programme supports the development of the new activities made possible by the arrival of electricity. This approach is supported by the FFEM as part of the Private Sector Innovation Facility (Facilité d’Innovation pour le Secteur Privé - FISP).