IFA at COP28
In two short weeks, delegates attending the 28th COP (Conference of the Parties) of the UNFCCC (the UN body responsible for the global climate agenda) will be arriving in Dubai to kick off their meetings and negotiations.
For IFA, COPs have become an annual milestone, an important opportunity to showcase the solutions and innovations being developed by IFA members contributing to climate mitigation and adaptation, to position the fertilizer industry as a leader and solutions provider to the global crises of climate, biodiversity loss and hunger; and to provide policymakers with scientifically based information on optimized plant nutrition.
With those objectives in mind, IFA has been preparing an ambitious agenda for COP28. The Association and its partner, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), will start with the official COP side event on 5 December focusing on the financing of the transition of agricultural systems. The speakers will include the World Bank Group, FinDev, ICF, GiZ, OCI, IRRI and the government of Vietnam. The event proposes to examine the cross-sectoral and interconnected solutions that are shaping climate finance today, tailored to the agriculture sector’s specificities and challenges.
In addition, IFA is preparing the following events:
Saturday 2 December (Food Systems Pavilion)
Power shift: weaning industrial food systems off fossil fuels
IFA will contribute to an event in the Food Systems Pavilion on December 2, organized by the Global Alliance for the Future of Food. The event proposes to focus on weaning food systems off fossil fuels to become more equitable, healthy and resilient. Invited as a panelist, Alzbeta Klein will share the industry’s decarbonization journey and its Scope 2 and 3 roadmaps.
Sunday 3 December (ICC Trade Partner stage)
Commodities Disrupted: Finding the Right Balance between climate policies, global trade and Achieving Zero Hunger
IFA will be taking over the ICC Trade Partner stage on December 3 to discuss the cumulative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the ever-urgent climate crisis on the global trade of agricultural commodities. We will highlight how these have impacted global food security, and the response measures put in place by the agrifood sector.
Co-organized with the Global Dairy Platform and CropLife International, the event proposes to discuss the solutions that the agrifood sector has identified and invested in, and the trade and food-related policy needs to support implementation in a challenging global context.
For more information, please contact Yvonne Harz-Pitre.
Monday 4 December (ETG Group office, Dubai)
High-Level Business Roundtable: Agri-Food value chains, nature and climate: Quo Vadis?
IFA is partnering with the World Business Council on Sustainable Development (WBCSD) to organize a high-level business roundtable on December 4, hosted by the ETG Group at its offices in Dubai. This moderated dialogue, bringing together leaders representing the whole agri-food chain, aims to find common solutions to the main challenges facing each player in the agri value chain today. This includes reducing their carbon footprint and addressing the many facets of sustainable food production.
The Roundtable will discuss how these challenges can be met, identifying where demonstrable progress is already taking place, and how innovative partnerships can lead to measurably more impact for each company involved.
For more information, please contact Yvonne Harz-Pitre.
Tuesday 5 December (Food System Pavilion)
Soil Health Day
IFA has been co-leading the organization of a day dedicated to soils in the Food Systems Pavilion. This coincides with the World Soil Day on 5 December, enabled through the support of OCI, OCP, Nutrien, Yara as well as Cargill, Syngenta, the Dairy Export Council, BASF and Bayer.
Five dedicated sessions on soil health, led by the members of the Coalition of Action for Soil Health, aim to raise awareness of the importance of soils for food systems. Soil health is also essential for food and nutrition security, for improving livelihoods and to support economic development.
IFA will be taking part in the event “Roadmaps to change: Collaborative partnerships to advance sustainable and productive agriculture while reducing emissions”. Co-led by Nutrien and the U.S. Dairy Export Council, and moderated by Alzbeta Klein, it will examine the powerful role of public-private partnerships for sustainable agricultural solutions.
For more information, please contact Margot Clifford or visit the Food Systems Pavilion website for the latest program.
Soils Leadership Dinner
Closing the events on Soil Health Day on 5 December, a Soils Leadership Dinner will be organized on the margins of COP28. It will provide a forum for senior leaders from the private sector, UN organizations, farmers, NGOs, and the civil society to garner commitments and pledges on soil health and carbon. The Forum will recommend a formal recognition of soils within the UNFCCC, demonstrating vital links between soils and climate.
For more information, please contact Yvonne Harz-Pitre.
