GOOD PLANET NEWS, 7 July 2026

Edition: 7 July 2026

Theme: El Niño — What the Pacific’s Great Warming Brings

On 11 June 2026, the NOAA officially declared El Niño conditions in the tropical Pacific. Sea surface temperatures in the El Niño 3.4 monitoring region had climbed to +1.7°C above average by mid-June, and models now project a 63 percent chance this becomes a very strong or historic event by late 2026. El Niño causes disruption to the environment, communities and is a serious risk to public health. But El Niño can also bring with it some positive impacts to specific places and ecosystems, and without diminishing the hardships it can bring, this week I want to highlight those. Here are five positive impacts the current El Niño is having around the world.

1. El Niño brings calm to the Atlantic Hurricane Season

satellite view of earth — Photo by SpaceX on Pexels.com

In June 2026, both NOAA and Colorado State University (CSU) revised their Atlantic hurricane season forecasts sharply downward, citing the rapidly developing El Niño as the dominant factor. The resulting atmospheric changes El Niño creates produce a higher-than-average vertical wind shear in the tropical Atlantic. This can prevent tropical cyclones from forming or intensifying. In other words, El Niño breaks hurricanes down before they become dangerous.

NOAA now predicts a 55% chance of a below-normal season, with just 8 to 14 named storms compared to a historical average of 14 to 17. CSU dropped its forecast to 11 named storms, only 5 of which are expected to become hurricanes.

Source: NOAA — 2026 Atlantic Hurricane Season Outlook, May 2026; Yale Climate Connections — June 2026

Buen Vivir connection: Reciprocity.Coastal communities have always read the sea for signs of what is coming. El Niño, in this instance, is sending a signal of relative calm. That breathing space matters for communities that are still recovering from recent storm seasons.

Why it matters: This matters enormously for the tens of millions of people living in coastal communities from the Gulf Coast to the Caribbean. A quieter hurricane season is not without risk entirely, but the current El Niño has significantly reduced the odds of a catastrophic hurricane making landfall this year, and that is genuinely good news.

2. The Colorado River will receive life-restoring rainfall

aerial view of the horseshoe bend arizona united states — Photo by Johan Van Geijl on Pexels.com

A multi-decadal drought, compounded by record-low snowpack this past winter, has pushed Lake Mead and Lake Powell– the two largest reservoirs on the Colorado River – to some of the lowest water levels since they were constructed. The reservoirs are the primary water supply for tens of millions of people across the American Southwest.

El Niño is now the most significant source of hope for rainfall relief. Strong El Niño events historically bring above-average precipitation to the US Southwest, and the developing 2026 event is already influencing the monsoon outlook. NOAA’s drought monitoring team noted that El Niño events have been drought-busters for the Southern US in past strong cycles, including the winters of 1982 to 1983, 1997 to 1998, and 2015 to 2016. A strong-to-very-strong (or so-called ‘super’ El Niño) event this year could help recharge both reservoirs and the groundwater aquifers that underlie farming communities across Arizona, New Mexico, and southern California.

Source: Weather West — El Niño 2026 Analysis, June 2026; Drought.gov — El Niño and the Southern Plains, March 2026

Buen Vivir connection: Water is life. It is the foundation of everything. For the communities, farms, and ecosystems of the American Southwest that have been living under increasing scarcity, the promise of El Niño rains this year bring with it both food security and the regeneration.

Why it matters: The Colorado River sustains 40 million people and 5.5 million acres of farmland. Its long-term health depends on wet winters. The current El Niño may not fully restore what years of drought have taken, but it meaningfully shifts the odds in the river’s favour.

3. Chile’s Atacama Desert is blooming

purple flower field near gray rocky mountain — Photo by Soly Moses on Pexels.com

The Atacama Desert in northern Chile is one of the driest places on Earth. For this reason it is often used to study conditions on mars, a hyper-arid desert. In a normal year, it receives less than four millimetres of rain, but the Atacama has a long memory of El Niño. The warming of Pacific waters along the South American coast that defines El Niño brings anomalous rainfall to the region, which triggers one of the most extraordinary ecological events on the planet: the desierto florido (or flowering desert).

In August 2025, ahead of the formal declaration of El Niño conditions, the Atacama received a rare downpour of more than 12 millimetres of rain. More than 200 species of wildflowers bloomed across hillsides that had been bare for years: fuchsia, yellow, violet, white. This is because seeds that had been dormant in the soil for up to 15 years germinated almost simultaneously. Scientists who have studied the Atacama for decades describe the botanical response to El Niño rainfall as one of the most dramatic ecological events associated with any climate phenomenon on Earth. The blooms have also been documented in 1983, 1991, 1998, 2005, 2012, and 2015 — all El Niño years. This encourgaed the Chilean government to create the Desierto Florido National Park in 2023, protecting 57,000 hectares of this desert ecosystem and the seed banks that make the blooms possible. As the current El Niño intensifies through 2026, another bloom season is anticipated for the region.

Source: EBSCO Research — Atacama Desert Ecosystem; PLOS One — El Niño and Coastal Desert Vegetation, 2018

Buen Vivir connection: For Atacama’s seeds that hold the memory of past rains and the potential for future abundance, El Niño is their signal for a healthy environment, allowing it to flourish.

Why it matters: The Desierto Florido National Park is a direct conservation response to the link between El Niño rainfall and this extraordinary biodiversity. The Atacama’s endemic flowering plants exist nowhere else on Earth, and protecting the seed banks now means the blooms will continue long into the future.

4. Peru’s fog oases are expanding

IMAGE — Pexels search: “Peru lomas coast fog green hills” / “coastal Peru desert oasis vegetation” / “lomas de lachay Peru plants”

aerial view of a foggy mountain top — Photo by Nandakumar R on Pexels.com

Along the Pacific coast of Peru lie the lomas, or fog oases, which are some of the most unusual ecosystems on Earth. Moisture from Pacific fogs supports surprisingly rich life in an otherwise hyperarid landscape, pushing isolated communities of plants to cling to coastal hillsides. The lomas are both fragile and seasonal, and intimately connected to El Niño.

Research published in PLOS One tracked a lomas ecosystem at Lomas de Lachay through the 1997 to 1998 El Niño, and found strong, consistent positive correlations between El Niño rainfall and vegetation cover, plant density, species diversity, and richness of endemic species. Scientists describe El Niño as one of the main forces shaping coastal desert vegetation across South America, which is essential to the long-term functioning and evolutionary history of communities across the Andes.

Scientists and conservationists in Peru are watching closely as the 2026 El Niño strengthens and Pacific sea surface temperatures rise, suggesting this El Niño may produce one of the most significant lomas bloom years in a generation.

Source: PLOS One / PMC — El Niño and Peru’s Lomas Ecosystems; NASA Earth Observatory — El Niño Is Underway, June 2026

Buen Vivir connection: The lomas hold ancient cultural significance. For thousands of years, the lomas have strengthened the relationship between people, plants, and Pacific climate for the people of the Andes. They are one of the oldest and most continuous examples of ecological knowledge on the continent and highlight the importance of reciprocity, harmony and a healthy environment.

Why it matters: The lomas are among the most threatened ecosystems in South America, wedged between urban expansion, wide-scale agriculture, and mining. Understanding how important El Niño rainfall is to their survival, strengthens the scientific and cultural case for protecting them.

5. The 2026 El Niño is teaching us about better adaptation and resilience

ocean waves during sunset — Photo by kien virak on Pexels.com

The 2026 El Niño is the most closely observed in human history. The Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite, a joint NASA and European Space Agency mission launched in 2020, is providing unprecedented real-time mapping of sea surface height anomalies across the Pacific, a reliable proxy for ocean temperature. Scientists are now tracking not just whether this becomes a historic event, but what it will teach us about how a warming baseline ocean amplifies and reshapes the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle.

Source: NASA Earth Observatory — El Niño Is Underway, June 2026; IRI Columbia — June 2026 ENSO Quick Look

Buen Vivir connection: El Niño has been shaping life on Earth for millions of years. That we can now watch it unfold in real time, tracking warm water moving across an ocean in satellite images, is a remarkable convergence of human knowledge and planetary scale. The question is whether we use that knowledge wisely.

Why it matters: The scientific attention matters beyond the data. The better we understand El Niño in real time, the more accurately communities can prepare for its impacts and its challenges, the more precisely we can anticipate ecosystem responses, and the more we learn about the deep relationship between Pacific climate and life on Earth. In other words by monitoring what’s happening now, it can help us better prepare for adaptation in the future. Accurate, early El Niño prediction saves lives, protects food systems, and allows ecosystems and communities to prepare. The investment in ocean monitoring and climate science that makes this possible is one of the most consequential and underappreciated forms of planetary stewardship we have.

El Niño is here, strengthening, and heading toward what may become a historic event. It will bring disruption in some places and real hardship, but it will also bring rain to parched deserts, calm hurricane-prone coastlines, and help bloom some of the most extraordinary ecosystems on Earth. Paying attention to both sides of that story is not optimism, it is accuracy.

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Good Planet News, 6 November

Edition: 6 November 2025
Theme: Respecting our Oceans, Restoring Balance, Regenerating Connection

Each of these stories embodies Buen Vivir: the understanding that socio-eco wellbeing arises when we live in harmony with all life. From Antarctic waters to the Amazong, people are re-imagining progress not as extraction, but as regeneration.

UK Retailer Ends Krill Sales for Antarctic Conservation

Holland & Barrett, a major UK health retailer, has stopped selling krill-based supplements to protect the Southern Ocean ecosystem. The move supports marine biodiversity by reducing harvest pressure on krill — the foundation of the Antarctic food web.
Source: Sea Shepherd Global – Positive Waves October 2025

Buen Vivir connection: Recognising the rights of ocean life to flourish, not merely to serve human markets.

Why it matters: Small consumer-market shifts can ripple outward to protect critical species and foster corporate accountability grounded in ecological ethics.

2. Wild Animals Officially Recognised as Critical Enablers of Climate Solutions

In a landmark move last month, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has officially recognised wild animals as essential allies for nature-based climate solutions. Thriving populations — from whales and fish that store carbon in the ocean to elephants and birds that regenerate forests — stabilise the planet’s systems.

This resolution sparks a significant turning point in international law, reframing wildlife not just passive victims of climate change, but as active participants, through seed dispersal, nutrient cycling, and ecosystem balance.

Source: Oceanographic Magazine

Buen Vivir connection: Affirms the interdependence of all life, recognising animals as holders of rights and co-creators of planetary balance.

Why it matters: Protecting animals becomes a pathway to restoring carbon cycles, regenerating ecosystems, and renewing our relationship with Earth.

3. Community-Led Ocean Protection Through “Soft Law”

Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich on Pexels.com

Researchers at the University of Exeter show that voluntary, community-based agreements can outperform rigid regulations in protecting marine ecosystems. By respecting local autonomy and cultural context, communities sustain conservation more naturally.

Source: Oceanographic Magazine

Buen Vivir connection: Harmony through collaboration, not domination.

Why it matters: Empowering coastal communities affirms that ecological wisdom lies not only in science, but in the lived experience of those most connected to the sea.

4. Brazil: Forest Protection and Local Prosperity Intertwined

At the Instituto Arapyaú, Renata Piazzon and partners are demonstrating that healthy forests and thriving local economies can coexist. Their projects link sustainable production, community wellbeing, and biodiversity.

Source: Mongabay – Brazil Can Protect Its Forests While Growing Its Economy

Buen Vivir connection: Mutual flourishing of people and ecosystems.

Why it matters: It shows how care for land and nature can generate enduring socio-eco wellbeing.

5. Boulder, Colorado: Urban Food Security Through Nature-Based Solutions

In Boulder, community members are collaborating with local Nature-Based Solutions teams to expand urban farms, restore pollinator corridors, and build climate resilience.
Source: City of Boulder

Buen Vivir connection: Food security re-roots the idea of nourishment in place, community, and reciprocity.

Why it matters: Demonstrates how cities can regenerate ecosystems while improving food access, transforming concrete into care.

Good Planet News, 15 October

Wednesday, October 15, 2025

Buen Vivir in Practice — Restoration, Innovation & Community Resilience

Buen Vivir teaches that ecological wellbeing and human dignity are intertwined. This week’s stories, from Australian rivers to Indian streets, Tanzanian hills to Toronto’s buried soils show how communities are regenerating life through care, knowledge, and reciprocity.

1. AI-Driven Coral Reseeding on the Great Barrier Reef (Australia)

Scientists have developed AI-powered coral re-seeding devices that autonomously identify and plant coral substrates across the reef, dramatically increasing restoration speed and accuracy.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Reciprocity with ecosystems, technology as ally, holistic wellbeing.

Why it matters: Manual coral restoration is slow and resource-intensive. These autonomous tools accelerate recovery and extend human care to otherwise unreachable reef areas — a model for coexistence between technology and nature.

2. Noongar-Led Restoration of Collie River Pools (Australia)

The Danju Noongar Landcare group has restored two at-risk river pools in Western Australia’s Upper Collie River, reviving native fish and crustacean habitats while protecting culturally significant waters.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Community stewardship, kinship with land and water, intergenerational care.

Why it matters: These river pools act as ecological refuges during dry spells. The project strengthens biodiversity, cultural continuity, and local stewardship. This is proof that restoration led by Traditional Owners brings enduring ecological and social health.

3. Ecological Entrepreneurs Regenerating Tanzania’s Landscapes

Three innovators from IUCN’s restoration incubation program are transforming degraded lands into sustainable enterprises, from seed banks to soil-health ventures, linking livelihoods and landscape renewal.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Economy rooted in ecology, regeneration through creativity and cooperation.

Why it matters: When communities profit from restoration rather than exploitation, ecological healing becomes self-sustaining. These entrepreneurs show how local enterprise can scale regeneration and resilience from the ground up.

4. Rediscovering Life in 130-Year-Old Soil (Toronto, Canada)

Archaeologists uncovering Toronto’s old waterfront found living seeds, roots, and microorganisms in soil buried for over a century, a testament to nature’s persistence.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Ecological memory, respect for the unseen, continuity across time.

Why it matters: The discovery shows how ecosystems retain latent vitality even after decades of disturbance, a humbling reminder that life endures and can be revived through mindful restoration.

5. Citizen-Led Urban Cooling & Eco-Routing (Pune, India)

Local volunteers in Pune are using open-data mapping tools to measure street-level heat, identify shaded routes, and promote community tree planting, creating cooler, more livable neighborhoods.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Collective knowledge, urban resilience, everyday wellbeing.

Why it matters: As urban heat rises, bottom-up innovations like this protect vulnerable residents, democratise climate data, and show how adaptation can be citizen-driven, not top-down.

🌍Good Planet News, 3 October

Date: Friday, October 3, 2025

No news is good news — besides this good news round-up bringing you a dose of positivity and hope.

Buen Vivir reminds us that ecological wellbeing and human wellbeing are inseparable.

Theme: Buen Vivir & Regeneration: Community Stewardship in Action

Great Barrier Reef Cleanup 2025 (Australia)
Communities along Queensland’s coastline are participating in beach & reef cleanups, removing marine debris and collecting data to inform future pollution reduction.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Reciprocity with ecosystems, local stewardship, holistic wellbeing.
Why it matters: Marine debris degrades coral, harms wildlife, and inhibits reef recovery. Local clean-ups not only reduce degradation but empower communities with knowledge and agency over their seascapes.

Schmidt Sciences Launches Antarctic Drone Fleet
Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is funding a fleet of autonomous surface drones to map ocean CO₂ and improve understanding of the Southern Ocean’s carbon cycle.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Knowledge as reciprocity, global commons care, scientific guardianship.
Why it matters: The Southern Ocean plays a huge role in absorbing CO₂. Better data helps us understand climate feedbacks, improve climate models, and protect key carbon sinks.

Urban Climate Science Strengthening in Australia
New research points out critical gaps in Australia’s urban climate modelling and observational systems and calls for local capacity building.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Local capacity, context-sensitive knowledge, community resilience.
Why it matters: Most Australians live in cities. Without accurate urban climate models and monitoring, adaptation plans may fail. Strengthening this capacity helps societal resilience to heat, storms, and other extremes.

Bio-tar to Bio-carbon: Turning Waste into Carbon Solutions
Scientists have found ways to transform bio-tar (a waste product) into a bio-carbon material that can help capture emissions and degrade pollutants.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Transforming waste into regenerative resource, ecological reciprocity, innovation for good.
Why it matters: Many waste streams are overlooked. Turning bio-tar into a functional carbon-capturing material could reduce emissions, detoxify environments, and close material loops.

Coral & Mangrove Restoration Led by Pacific Communities
In parts of the Pacific, local community science projects are growing corals and restoring mangroves, combining local ecological knowledge with regenerative practices.
Read more →

Buen Vivir connection: Community-led restoration, plural ecological knowledge, cultural ties to sea.
Why it matters: Coastal communities rely on healthy reefs & mangroves for food, storm protection, and identity. When they lead restoration, outcomes tend to be more durable, locally adapted, and ethically grounded.

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🌍 Good Planet News, 25 September

This week’s good news round-up on September 25, 2025, “Buen Vivir in Action” highlights global community projects promoting ecological balance and reciprocity. From Kolkata’s heritage restoration to Cuba’s microgreen initiative, these stories illustrate efforts in sustainability, cultural identity, and community resilience across diverse locales, emphasizing the vital connection between human dignity and ecological wellbeing.

Date: Thursday, September 25, 2025

Buen Vivir in Action — Community, Reciprocity, and Ecological Balance

No news is good news – besides this good news round-up bringing you a dose of positivity and hope.

Buen Vivir reminds us that ecological wellbeing and human dignity are inseparable. This week’s stories show how communities in all parts of the globe are co-creating futures of reciprocity and resilience, from Havana rooftops to Thai lakes, Australian bushlands to PNG rainforests

1. Kolkata’s Citizens Restore 94 Heritage Buildings (India)

Community donations light up Raj Bhavan, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and more, sparking civic pride and ecological urban renewal.
🔗 Read more →

Buen Vivir principles: Community-led, cultural identity, reciprocity with place.
Why it matters: Heritage revival enhances urban ecological identity, strengthens community pride, and fosters stewardship of public spaces.

Photo: Times of India

2. Cuba’s Microgreen Revolution

A Havana start-up grows nutritious microgreens in shipping containers, training neighbors and creating new food pathways.
🔗 Read more →

Buen Vivir princples: Food sovereignty, endogenous innovation, holistic wellbeing.
Why it matters: In crisis, communities can seed local resilience — nutritious food, livelihoods, dignity.

3. April Salumei Rainforest Conservation (Papua New Guinea)

An innovative new five-year Sustainable Development Plan for the April Salumei Rainforest Community Conservation Project in Papua New Guinea has been developed to provide long-term community benefits. 600,000 hectares of rainforest preserved by landowner-driven conservation and sustainable development planning.
🔗 Read more →

Buen Vivir principles: Holistic rights, ecological reciprocity, plural context.
Why it matters: Avoids 22.8 million tonnes of CO₂, preserves habitat, and strengthens community voice in global climate finance.

4. Indigenous Fire Stewardship Revives Country (Australia)

First Nations fire practices are reviving habitats, reducing catastrophic bushfires, and strengthening cultural ties to land.
🔗 Read more →

Buen Vivir : Knowledge sovereignty, harmony with nature, collectivewellbeing
Why it matters: Indigenous fire practice reduces catastrophic bushfire risk, restores biodiversity, and reconnects people with Country.

Photo by Buu011fra u00d6zcan on Pexels.com

5. Songkhla Lake Mangrove Revival (Thailand)

Local communities restore 50 hectares of mangroves, forming a Mangrove Rehabilitation Club to sustain long-term care.
🔗 Read more →

Buen Vivir: Community-driven, participation, reciprocity with ecosystems, shared wellbeing.
Why it matters: Restored mangroves stabilize coastlines, nurture fish nurseries, and empower communities to govern local ecosystems.

Mangroves along the wateru2019s edge, shallow water offshore. by Sithara Koramparambil is licensed under CC-CC0 1.0

Good Planet News, 9 September

Mangrove Restoration_Kenya_Mangroves (3) - Salesforce

Global South Edition

Date: Wednesday, September 17, 2025

🌍 🌱

🌊 Marereni, Kenya: A Community-Led Mangrove Revival

What happened
In Marereni, Kilifi County, a collaborative effort between Seatrees, Community-Based Environmental Conservation (COBEC), and local communities has led to the restoration of over 640 hectares of mangrove forests. The project has engaged over 600 community members, predominantly women, in establishing and maintaining mangrove nurseries. Participants earn income from selling mangrove seedlings and engaging in restoration activities. The initiative has resulted in improved fish stocks and enhanced coastal resilience.
🔗 Read more →

Buen Vivir Principles:

Community-led & endogenous: Local communities are at the forefront of the restoration efforts, utilizing traditional knowledge and practices.
Holistic wellbeing: The project addresses ecological health, economic stability, and cultural values.
Reciprocity with nature: The restoration of mangroves enhances biodiversity and provides ecosystem services that benefit the community.

Why it matters
This project exemplifies how community-led initiatives can effectively restore ecosystems while providing sustainable livelihoods and enhancing resilience to climate change.

🌿 Lamu County, Kenya: Integrating Restoration with Community Development

What happened
The Lamu County Mangrove Restoration Initiative, led by Eden People+Planet, restored over 1,120 hectares of mangrove forests from 2020 to 2024. The project integrated mangrove restoration with inland forest protection and community development across multiple ecological zones. Innovative restoration techniques were developed, providing valuable foundations for future carbon-eligible mangrove projects in similar landscapes across the region.
🔗 Learn more →

Buen Vivir Principles

Holistic wellbeing: The project addressed ecological health, economic stability, and cultural values.
Alternative economies: The initiative promoted sustainable livelihoods through eco-friendly practices.
Plural/local context: Restoration techniques were tailored to the local ecological zones and community needs.

Why it matters
This initiative demonstrates the effectiveness of integrating ecological restoration with community development, leading to sustainable and resilient ecosystems.

🌊 Gazi Bay, Kenya: Restoring Ecosystems and Livelihoods

What happened
The Aga Khan Foundation, in partnership with the Kenya Forest Service, is restoring 226 hectares of degraded mangrove forests in Gazi Bay, Kwale County. The three-year project aims to rehabilitate vital ecosystems while fostering sustainable livelihoods. It aligns with AKF’s commitment to integrating environmental restoration with community development, ensuring long-term ecological health and economic stability.
🔗 Discover the project →

Buen Vivir Principles

Community-led & endogenous: Local communities are engaged in the restoration efforts, utilizing traditional knowledge and practices.
Holistic wellbeing: The project addresses ecological health, economic stability, and cultural values.
Reciprocity with nature: The restoration of mangroves enhances biodiversity and provides ecosystem services that benefit the community.

Why it matters
This project highlights the importance of integrating environmental restoration with community development to build resilience and ensure sustainable livelihoods.

🌊 Kolkata’s Heritage Revival: A Community-Led Transformation

What happened
Between November 2023 and September 2025, Kolkata, India has undergone a transformative heritage revival driven by a citizen-powered initiative named Kolkata Restorers. What started modestly with crowdfunding to light up the dome of Maniktala Market has grown into a vibrant movement revitalizing 94 historic buildings across the city. Through small donations—often Rs 500 to Rs 1,000—from individuals, families, and NRIs, residents have embraced preservation as a shared civic responsibility. Iconic landmarks like Raj Bhavan, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and New Market now glow at night as symbols of civic pride and historical continuity. The initiative fosters a “democracy of memory,” where even small contributions allow citizens to feel personally connected to Kolkata’s cultural narrative. By mirroring global heritage cities like Paris and Istanbul, this movement demonstrates how collective action can redefine urban pride and inspire hope. The Times of India

Buen Vivir Principles

Community-led & endogenous: Residents are at the forefront of the restoration efforts, utilizing traditional knowledge and practices.
Holistic wellbeing: The project addresses cultural preservation, community pride, and environmental sustainability.
Reciprocity with nature: The restoration of historic buildings enhances the city’s aesthetic value and fosters a deeper connection to the environment.

Why it matters
This initiative exemplifies how community-led efforts can effectively restore cultural heritage while promoting environmental sustainability and fostering a sense of collective identity.

Holistic Earth Boundaries for a Safe Climate Need Systems Transformation

A new study published in Nature Journal last Wednesday 31 May by the international scientist group Earth Commission created a holistic measurement framework of quantifiable boundaries for climate, air pollution, phosphorus, and nitrogen contamination of water from fertilizer overuse, groundwater supplies, fresh surface water, the unbuilt natural environment, and the overall natural and human-built environment.

The holistic measuring of the earth’s interlocking ecosystems considers not only the point at which environmental conditions become harmful for people but also the risks for each environmental element, while also considering justice on a local and regional scale. Elements of justice are important for climate change because the groups most vulnerable to climate impacts are those who have contributed least to the climate crisis.

As the authors state, “The stability and resilience of the Earth system and human well-being are inseparably linked, yet their interdependencies are generally under-recognized; consequently, they are often treated independently” – particularly at the policy level – and, “rapid changes to the Earth system undermine critical life-support systems with significant societal impacts already felt, and they could lead to triggering tipping points that irreversibly destabilize the Earth system. These changes are mostly driven by social and economic systems run on unsustainable resource extraction and consumption. Contributions to Earth system change and the consequences of its impacts vary greatly among social groups and countries. Given these interdependencies between inclusive human development and a stable and resilient Earth system (Rockström et al)”.

The Earth Safe Boundaries (ESB) proposed in the framework set out by over 40 scientists, do not represent ‘tipping points’ (although tipping points inform the ESBs), but rather set out safe scientific boundaries for “maintain[ing] and enhanc[ing] the stability and resilience of the Earth system over time, thereby safeguarding its functions and ability to support humans and all other living organisms”.

Climate justice and social justice are inextricably linked. This fact is becoming increasingly recognised on a global stage. In praxis, it requires addressing historic injustices such as colonialism, resource exploitation, and land access that have driven the climate crisis while destroying ecosystems, and livelihoods, and wiping out local economies, biodiversity, culture, and displacing communities. Systems change in local and regional scale development is an important leverage to ensure that we stay within these holistic earth boundaries and address injustices through systems change.

The study concludes that meeting the just boundaries without significant harm to humans and ecosystems requires transformation. While they provide a good tool for the measurement of the earth’s safe boundaries and the threshold for crossing those limits, they do not provide any practical suggestions for that transformation.

“Nothing less than a just global transformation across all ESBs is required to ensure human well-being. Such transformations must be systemic across energy, food, urban and other sectors, addressing the economic, technological, political and other drivers of Earth system change, and ensure access for the poor through reductions and reallocation of resource use. All evidence suggests this will not be a linear journey; it requires a leap in our understanding of how justice, economics, technology and global.”
Rockström et al

In that respect, the ESBs can be seen to complement more practical frameworks for local-level environmental and social wellbeing.

There are many alternative concepts that can empower communities at the local level to address these issues. Many are being embraced on larger scales such as regenerative economies, circular economies, and the doughnut model. In fact, the study authors state that the ESBs look to build upon policy and research on Planetary Boundaries (PBs) framework, doughnut economics, and the Sustainable Development Goals. Yet, if we take a more holistic view of these interlocking systems, it is not only economic models that should be considered but whole-of-society models.

Frameworks like Buen Vivir that seek to address social, economic, and environmental factors at the local levels by empowering local communities to act within ecological and social boundaries can be effective local solutions to the climate crisis while at the same time addressing issues of justice and wellbeing. Models that connect the whole-earth systems including social and environmental wellbeing are best placed to start achieving long-term change that is scaled up to include national and global level policies and consumer market change. They provide viable points of action that is easily implemented and correlated with policy.

In short, scientifically quantifiable boundaries are vital for the future of the planet and humankind, but these must go hand-in-hand with actionable and practical solutions that can be translated on the ground. Transformation of all systems is thus where we must start to ensure that we approach the safe and just boundaries with caution for the future stability and resistance of earth’s interconnected systems.

COP27 – Systems Change for Climate Action

On day 2 of the COP27, session 3: High-level Session on Systems Change and Climate and Sustainability Innovations examined the deep paradigm shift needed for effective climate action. There was one key overarching message that I took from this session that also resonated with my own work: we need a radical rethink of our economic systems, social justice, and the way we approach natural resources.

There were two issues that panelists argued need addressing in terms of innovation if we are to address climate change effectively and timely: 1) decoupling human wellbeing from the use of natural resources; 2) power, or rather the decentralization of power. Both issues are addressed in a Buen Vivir framework, which is one reason why I focus on the concept, not only for social wellbeing but ecological wellbeing too. It ties into yesterday’s discussion on empowering local communities for climate action.

Janez Potocnik, Co-Chair of UN International Resource Panel hit the nail on the head when he argued that we need to move from an economy that sees humans as external to nature, to one which understands humans are a part of nature. He also stated that we need to remove the causes which lead to negative impacts, of which extractivism is a core function because it is a driver of human needs, but it is also the cause of great inequalities.

Janez argued that to live sustainably, we must move to provisioning for human needs, rather than servicing existing paradigms. I argue further that in that, we must also provision for environmental needs. Without taking into consideration the needs natural resources, ecosystems and biodiversity have to continue to function and thrive, we risk destroying them to the detriment of society.

Dr Andres Steer, President of Bezos Earth Fund brought up the critical issue of power and control – that in the absence of empowering local communities to take action on the ground, any advances in innovation (whether that be technological, knowledge, economic, or otherwise) are void. This is perhaps one of the greatest challenges to effective climate action, the ability for decision and policy-makers, and others who hold the balance of power to cede some of that power to local communities to identify and implement solutions.

We see this with the concept of neoliberal development, under which the idea of sustainable development – and multilateral policymaking forums – sit. The overarching paradigm sees one set of values as dominant and therefore urges everyone to take the same approach, without having any idea about local challenges and the context on the ground. Dr Steer urged the UN to consider this transformative climate action, pleading, “as we think about changing the system, let’s not forget that on Monday morning we need to address real problems on the ground.” In other words, high-level aspirational commitments are nice, “and make for good dinner party conversation”, but are not always conducive to feeding effective solutions in real-time.

In closing this session, the facilitator summarised that “we have called for radical rethink. We have called for accepting that we will have to act in crisis. We are not going to be dealing with a world that is not in crisis.”

On that note, it is reassuring to hear the acknowledgment that frameworks and concepts like Buen Vivir, Donut Economics, Degrowth, Circular Society, and others that were once considered too ‘radical’ and pie-in-the-sky, could bring the kinds of holistic empowerment solutions the world needs in times of urgent climate crisis. Now it is about taking these from idea to action.

A Good Life for the SDGs

Time to change the lens for sustainability?

The Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to social and environmental sustainability, with an overarching goal of ending poverty and protecting the planet by 2030. Universal is the keyword. This means they apply to everyone, everywhere, regardless. This makes them more aspirational than practical and because of this, it’s argued that they are impossible to achieve. Indeed, by all accounts, they are failing. And, we’re running out of time.

The 2022 Progress Report on the SDGs details the immense challenge ahead of us in terms of achieving social, environmental and economic sustainability. The report admits a backward slide against the Goals (albeit in the face of significant “cascading crises”, most notably in terms of poverty, climate change, and environmental indicators.

Climate change and sustainability come hand in hand. A changing climate is a major challenge for social and environmental sustainability. In turn, the way modern society functions is far from sustainable long, or even medium term and is hastening the speed of climatic changes that are occurring.

The IPCC has confirmed that climate change is caused by human activity, and it is happening at a speed faster than first realised. Thwaites “doomsday” Glacier in Antarctica, for example, is melting at a speed faster than could ever have been anticipated, threatening global sea levels to rise up to .6m https://theconversation.com/thwaites-glacier-the-melting-antarctic-monster-of-sea-level-rise-podcast-191057

UN Secretary-General, António Guterres has called the current climate situation a “code red for humanity”. Everyone everywhere will (and already is) experience the wrath of the past decades’ inaction. As I have argued many times, we cannot continue to decouple human and environmental wellbeing. These “cascading crises” are complex, and they are entangled.

The outlook is not good. While it seems like we are on a one-way course for destruction, there is definitely hope in limiting the scale of future destruction, if we band together, separately. That is, if we change divert the approach from ‘universal’ to ‘contextual’. Immediately.

In the words of Sneddon et al. (2006)

“Sustainability may yet be possible if sufficient numbers of scholars, practitioners and political actors embrace a plurality of approaches to and perspectives on sustainability, accept multiple interpretations and practices associated with an evolving concept of “development”, and support a further opening up of local-to-global public spaces to debate and enact a politics of sustainability.”

Because climate change is a global challenge (perhaps the biggest!) with no geographical limits it requires a global response. Let me rephrase that, it requires a response globally, that is anchored in local geographical, climatic, ecological, socio-political, economic, and cultural contexts.

The thing about place is that no one locale is the same. Place is a complex notion. Each comes with its own identity, challenges, and socio-economic situation. The identifying factors aren’t just social, each place is unique with its own environment, biodiversity, ecosystems, topographical, geological, and geographical advantages, and disadvantages. Place influences a person’s identity and empathy towards nature, which plays a role in the motivation for climate and sustainability action. The perception of place is then vital to social and environmental justice at the community level. This makes the community context the most practical viewpoint for addressing social and environmental issues.

What’s more, climate change is not and will not affect each place equally. Each community will mount its own challenges that are unique to that place. So, it is nonsensical to then believe that we can apply a universal approach to these issues, even if they have global scope. Plus, large-scale transformational systemic change is inherently complicated, and especially drawn out – a major issue when dealing with issues on an urgent timescale like climate change.

Global declarations and treaties are a vital part of the international system. They are an important tool to set the wheels in motion for action in all parts of the world, and they outline states’ responsibilities and obligations in responding to challenges that affect us all. But, they are not effective in their own right. International action is firmly squared within the boundaries of neoliberalism, which promotes universal values in line with Western standards, and ignores the diverse realities of communities everywhere. This has indeed been one of the most common critiques in relation to global climate declarations. International climate diplomacy must be coupled with locally anchored solutions within a context that speaks to locally-identified needs and challenges, otherwise, they are all but useless.

What alternative approaches like Buen Vivir do is remove local action for social and environmental justice from ideal and aspirational universal values and provide local communities with agency to drive solutions that meet their realities. As a hypothetical example, let’s look at two climate-related flood disasters, the solutions that are required for (comparably) affluent communities in Northern New South Wales in Australia will not work in the poor communities of Pakistan which are currently experiencing climate flooding of biblical proportions.

Small-scale transformational change breaks up larger big-picture goals like the SDGs and makes them amenable to place and context. Smaller chunks are easier to swallow and (notwithstanding all the complexities in a community) quicker to achieve real change. Concepts like Buen Vivir also help reconcile the social and environmental aspects, that builds bridges between the two rather than having them almost compete for attention.

Local action for climate change is crucial and Buen Vivir provides a framework for locally driven solutions that build resilience, mitigate impacts, and allow communities to adapt in relation to their own realities. In that respect it provides a tool for increasing social and environmental wellbeing in the face of these challenges. Having local solutions unadulterated by the global agenda yet capable of working together in cooperation with it is vital for transformative action at this point. ‘Together yet apart’ – much like the catchphrase of the COVID lockdown period.

Even the upcoming COP27 in Egypt has recognised the importance of working together for implementation against the old notion of a single negotiated outcome. The Presidency Vision states the need “to replicate and rapidly upscale all other climate-friendly solutions towards implementation in developing countries”. “Together for implementation” is the theme, with the Presidency saying that implementation needs to happen “on time and at scale”, and be “specific, measurable, and impactful”.

Each of the principles of Buen Vivir has the potential to cooperate with the wider global Goals, but leaving it to the communities to identify the needs and respective solutions. I outline just how the principles converge with the Goals in my book and more recently paper published in the Community Development Journal .

Never before has the term “think globally, act locally” been more prevalent than now. And never has the call been more urgent!

The People’s Charter for an Eco-Social World

The Global People’s Summit: Co-Creating a New Eco-Socio World was held 29 June – 2 July 2022. I was honored to have been included in the program, presenting my research on Buen Vivir.

One of the key outcomes of the Peoples’ Global Summit was the ‘Peoples’ Charter’ shaped by diverse voices across the globe and based on the values of Buen Vivir, diversity, respect and Ubuntu, for the co-creation of globally shared values.

The People’s Charter is a living document and reference point that will grow as the world’s populations share their solutions for a sustainable planet where people live in peace and security. It is co-designed and co-built.

“The People’s Global Summit recognises that the pledges made by governments since the founding of the United Nations – the pillars of peace, development and human rights – have facilitated crucial steps forward but have not yet been realised. Challenges are at crisis point. Rights have been eroded. Inequalities and fractures have grown. Poverty sits alongside extreme wealth. Nature has been degraded, leading to climate warming and environmental destruction. Millions of people have been displaced as a result, adding to the millions more displaced by conflict and violence. The governments that made these commitments have prioritized competition over collaboration and sovereignty over solidarity. They have not yet served the people they represent.”

The Charter sets out five values for a new Socio-Eco World and seven implications going forward. The purpose was to create a call to action for world leaders at the United Nations High-Level Political Forum and General Assembly in July 2022.

If you missed the Summit, you can still watch the presentations by clicking the sessions in the program here. Be sure to check out some of the amazing keynote speakers, as well as the opening ceremony by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterrez and climate activist Dr Kumi Naidoo.

You can read the contribution book here.

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