smallgrantsprogramme 346d ago

The Community Development and Knowledge Management for the Satoyama Initiative Programme (COMDEKS) was launched in 2011 as a flagship programme of the Satoyama Initiative, a global effort to promote the sustainable use of natural resources in landscapes and seascapes with local communities. Known as socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS), these landscapes and seascapes include many uses, from farming and fishing to forestry. Their productivity and resilience are central to the economic well-being and cultural identity of communities who depend on them throughout the world. With support from the Ministry of the Environment of Japan (MOEJ) and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has been implementing COMDEKS through the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP) for over a decade. Since its launch in 2011, COMDEKS has supported over 400 community projects in 20 countries across three phases. In 2022, the programme entered its fourth phase, with support from MOEJ as well as the Keidanren Nature Conservation Fund (KNCF). COMDEKS Phase 4 is being implemented in 15 countries and is currently supporting locally-led projects across a range of landscapes and seascapes focused on biodiversity conservation and sustainable management. Aligned with the HLPF 2025 theme on “Advancing sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs for leaving no one behind” this side event highlighted the role of the COMDEKS programme in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and key targets under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Community speakers from Bhutan, Morocco and Kyrgyzstan highlighted the role of local actors on designing and implementing innovative, inclusive, sustainable and locally-lead solutions that address the triple planetary crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.