Radio Davos

The destruction of the natural world is the 'other' global environmental crisis, but it is entwined with climate change. Global warming is the number-one cause of that destruction, and the loss of forests and other 'carbon sinks' is increasing the pace of climate change. At COP26, world leaders agreed to halt and reverse deforestation and land degradation by the end of the decade, pledging $19 billion in public and private funds. Among the countries to sign up were Brazil, Indonesia and Democratic Republic of Congo, which collectively account for 85% of the world's forests. In this episode we speak to Tabi Joda, a forester in Cameroon who is helping plant the Great Green Wall - reforesting a strip right across the southern edge of the Sahara desert. We hear from Natura, a major cosmetics company on how businesses can make money from forests without destroying them, and Elizabeth Mrema, the head of the UN's biodiversity convention - the person driving global efforts to protect nature - on a new plan to get companies to report on their impact on the natural world.

US climate envoy John Kerry and World Economic Forum President Brende Borge launched an initiative at COP26 to bring big companies and customers together to build demand for green products that require major investment and innovation. This episode has some highlights from the event which can be seen in full here: https://www.weforum.org/events/forum-cop26-live-2021/sessions/first-movers-coalition-launch

As COP26 opens, Radio Davos hears from a journalist who has covered dozens of UN climate gatherings and has reported on how global warming is affecting the remotest corners of the world. Alister Doyle's book The Great Melt: Accounts from the Frontline of Climate Change takes us from a dangerously melting ice sheet in the Antarctic to a town high in the Andes threatened by floods from glacial meltwaters. And we hear how Anders Celsius didn't only invent the temperature scale by which we measure global warming, he also made big strides in the way we understand sea-level rise.

What is COP26, why is it important, and what should we expect? With guest co-host Gideon Lichfield, the global editor in chief of Wired, we look at the key issues at the Glasgow climate summit where world leaders need to show how we can achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and avert climate catastrophe. Includes an interview with veteran climate campaigner Jennifer Morgan, the Greenpeace chief who has been to every single COP.

In this COP26 special, we look at the immense challenge of making energy carbon-neutral. As the International Energy Agency records a surge in coal use and record jump in greenhouse gas emissions, its head, Fatih Birol, tells us what he wants from the climate summit. And the CEO of UK electricity market disruptor Octopus Energy says data will be the key to switching to renewables. Plus a view on COP26 and climate change from young Peruvian @InesYabar.

Food accounts for one-third of greenhouse gas emissions, so how can we make it sustainable? We talk to the author of Eating to Extinction about the risks of relying on a handful of food types, and learn how restaurants could play a big role in getting us to eat our greens. Guests: Dan Saladino, author of Eating to Extinction; Michael Oshman, founder and CEO of the Green Restaurants Association.

Ahead of the COP26 climate summit, endurance swimmer Lewis Pugh takes us into icy - but warming - Arctic waters; UN envoy Peter Thomson calls on world leaders to act urgently to protect the ocean. And we head to the swamps of Colombia to find out why coastal ecosystems - mangroves, seagrasses and saltmarshes - are powerful allies in the fight against global warming.

Despite the pandemic forcing a rapid digitalization of the economy, 3.7 billion people in the world still do not have internet access. Business and government leaders from around the world meet to discuss how to change this. Panellists: Paula Ingabire, Minister of Information and communications technology and Innovation of Rwanda Omar bin Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Application of the United Arab Emirates Achim Steiner, Administrator, United Nations Development Programme Tan Hooi Ling, Co-Founder, GrabRobert F. Smith, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Vista Equity Partners Adrian Lovett, President and Chief Executive Officer, World Wide Web Foundation Chaired by: Børge Brende, President, World Economic ForumModerated by: Adrian Monck, Managing Director, World Economic Forum Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can we avoid climate catastrophe? Salesforce 'futurist' Peter Schwartz sets out three main scenarios for the future of humanity. And US climate envoy John Kerry pops in during his travels to drum up support for climate action ahead of the Glasgow summit.

US climate envoy John Kerry joins an in-person panel at the World Economic Forum to discuss how companies can lead the way in cutting greenhouse gas emissions. The leaders of the world's biggest shipping and cement companies, Maersk and Holcim, tell us what they are doing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.