Climate and Development Knowledge Network

01/06/2026

🇪🇹 Young people are not only beneficiaries of climate action. They are active contributors to policy, implementation and accountability 🇪🇹

A Youth Climate Action Workshop organised by Enfluencers and Ethiopian Women and Youth Climate Assembly (EWYCA) with the support of CDKN, brought together The Youth Canvas Ethiopia members, youth-led organisations, climate actors and partners to explore how youth-led initiatives can better align with Ethiopia’s national climate frameworks, including the NDCs, NAPs, LT-LEDS, CRGE Strategy and the Climate Change Gender Action Plan.

The session created space for learning, dialogue and practical reflection on youth inclusion in climate governance, gender-responsive climate action, and pathways toward COP32 and LCOY Ethiopia 2026.

CDKN and SouthSouthNorth are pleased to support the Youth Canvas as a platform for young climate leaders to connect, learn and contribute to Ethiopia’s climate future.

To learn more about CDKN’s work in Ethiopia, visit our website: https://cdkn.org/project/ethiopia-community-practice-gender-equality-and-social-inclusion-gesi-climate-change

IDRC / CRDI Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken

01/06/2026

🇪🇹 How are community-led solutions driving climate resilience in Ethiopia? 🇪🇹
👉 https://cdkn.org/resource/enhancing-resilience-ethiopias-simien-mountains-through-community-led-ecosystem-based-adaptation

A new Learning Story by Hannah Sack, Nadia Sitas, Arsema Andargatchew and Kaleb Asnake Worku shows how, in Ethiopia’s Simien Mountains, a community-led ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) project implemented by ORDA Ethiopia and CARE Ethiopia is delivering real, tangible change for both people and nature – restoring ecosystems, strengthening livelihoods, and reshaping governance.

As a result:
✅ Over 1.9 million seedlings have been planted, restoring 8,642 hectares of land
✅ Access to clean water improved through spring development and watershed management
✅ 280 savings and loan groups support more than 7,000 members to build financial resilience
✅ Livelihoods have been diversified through beekeeping, ecotourism, and climate-smart agriculture
✅ Women’s leadership increased significantly, with participation in key roles rising to over 40% in watershed cooperatives

This case study offers valuable insights for climate policy and practice globally, showing how important is for communities to shape climate solutions.

👉 Read the full Learning Story here: https://cdkn.org/resource/enhancing-resilience-ethiopias-simien-mountains-through-community-led-ecosystem-based-adaptation

IDRC / CRDI Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken Cris Robertson

01/06/2026

𝐎𝐏𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐔𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐘: Apply now to be a Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) Restoration Steward - receive funding, mentorship, global visibility and networking opportunities to elevate your restoration projects!

🗓️ Application deadline: 31 July 2026
🌐 Submissions can also be made in French, Spanish, Portuguese and Indonesian Bahasa
✅ Apply here: https://stewards.globallandscapesforum.org/2027-restoration-stewards-call-for-application/

📣 Apply Now to Become a 2027 Restoration Steward

Are you leading efforts to restore 🌊Oceans, ⛰️Mountains, 🏜️Drylands or 🏞️Wetlands, or 🌳Forests?

We're looking for the next cohort of Restoration Stewards: dedicated young leaders who will receive funding, mentorship, global visibility, and networking opportunities to elevate their restoration projects to new heights.

🗓️ Application deadline: 31 July 2026
🌐 Submissions can also be made in French, Spanish, Portuguese and Indonesian Bahasa
✅ Apply here: https://stewards.globallandscapesforum.org/2027-restoration-stewards-call-for-application/

Submit your application now for a chance to join this unique global movement advancing landscape restoration and ecosystem recovery.

27/05/2026

🌎 Join CDKN's Prince Ansah (MPhil, PhD) and Valerie Kplorm Aku Nutakor at this week's 1st of the PCCB Network Capacity-Building Series! 🌎
👉 Register here 👉 117d1878-409d-46a3-b723-7db7279e7446@2a6c12ad-406a-4f33-b686-f78ff5822208?fbclid=IwY2xjawSDpDFleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeVZZgfBYxoV6rSw-XGsm2pxUOUz3cPpw8RAxuMSHH-1XfFic1yHN8fy3VFZI_aem_hvfk2HWM_Ei8BzGm-fcinQ" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/117d1878-409d-46a3-b723-7db7279e7446@2a6c12ad-406a-4f33-b686-f78ff5822208?fbclid=IwY2xjawSDpDFleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeVZZgfBYxoV6rSw-XGsm2pxUOUz3cPpw8RAxuMSHH-1XfFic1yHN8fy3VFZI_aem_hvfk2HWM_Ei8BzGm-fcinQ

📅 29 May 2026
🕐 13:00–14:30 (UTC+2)
💻 Register here: 117d1878-409d-46a3-b723-7db7279e7446@2a6c12ad-406a-4f33-b686-f78ff5822208?fbclid=IwY2xjawSDpDFleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeVZZgfBYxoV6rSw-XGsm2pxUOUz3cPpw8RAxuMSHH-1XfFic1yHN8fy3VFZI_aem_hvfk2HWM_Ei8BzGm-fcinQ" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/117d1878-409d-46a3-b723-7db7279e7446@2a6c12ad-406a-4f33-b686-f78ff5822208?fbclid=IwY2xjawSDpDFleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeVZZgfBYxoV6rSw-XGsm2pxUOUz3cPpw8RAxuMSHH-1XfFic1yHN8fy3VFZI_aem_hvfk2HWM_Ei8BzGm-fcinQ

UN Climate Change Paris Committee on Capacity-building Cris Robertson IDRC / CRDI Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken

26/05/2026

🌍 This , we're celebrating the extraordinary stories of those already shaping locally led adaptation solutions that respond to lived realities.

Across CDKN’s network of public, private and civil society partners, we are seeing powerful examples of effective that is rooted in local knowledge, local priorities and local decision-making:

👉 Championing inclusive climate action: Lessons from Ethiopia’s gender and climate change community of practice https://cdkn.org/story/championing-inclusive-climate-action-addis-ababa-lessons-ethiopias-gender-and-climate-change-community-practice
👉 Strengthening rangeland management through community knowledge and science in Namibia https://cdkn.org/story/strengthening-rangeland-management-through-community-knowledge-and-science-otjinene
👉 Learning from the ground: How science and local knowledge are reducing climate risks in Senegal https://cdkn.org/story/learning-ground-how-science-and-local-knowledge-are-reducing-climate-risks-coastal-city-saint-louis-senegal
👉 Building a circular economy: Transforming Ghana's e-waste crisis https://cdkn.org/story/building-circular-economy-transforming-ghanas-e-waste-crisis
👉 Kenya’s innovative approach to tracking and reporting climate action impact https://cdkn.org/story/measuring-impact-kenyas-innovative-approach-tracking-and-reporting-climate-action-impact
👉 Traditional knowledge driving local-scale business and biodiversity conservation in Benin https://cdkn.org/story/traditional-knowledge-driving-local-scale-business-and-biodiversity-conservation-central-benin
👉 Identifying climate-related risks and adaptation measures through infrastructure mapping in South Sudan https://cdkn.org/project/identifying-climate-related-risks-and-adaptation-measures-through-infrastructure-mapping-south-sudan
👉 Mobilising locally-led action for restoration and governance in Kenya https://cdkn.org/project/mobilising-locally-led-action-restoration-and-governance-mount-marsabit-kenya
👉 Supporting local adaptation efforts to leverage scientific and Indigenous knowledge in Mozambique https://cdkn.org/project/supporting-local-adaptation-efforts-leverage-scientific-and-indigenous-knowledge-western-mozambique
👉 Urban art for climate in Cameroon https://cdkn.org/project/urban-art-climate-cameroon

IDRC / CRDI Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken

21/05/2026

🌿 Ahead of , learn how CDKN's work supports locally led, rights-based approaches that integrate and 👉 https://cdkn.org/story/acting-locally-global-impact-advancing-biodiversity-and-climate-action-through-rights-knowledge-and-governance

We need to recognise the important and interlinking role of nature and people in achieving both adaptation and mitigation goals. Actions that restore ecosystems while strengthening community rights and leadership can deliver powerful co-benefits for both people and nature.

Experience from CDKN and its partners has shown that ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) and other nature-based solutions (NbS) can deliver long-term gains, but only where they are shaped by local priorities and grounded in local realities.

📖 Want to learn more? Read here 👉 https://cdkn.org/story/acting-locally-global-impact-advancing-biodiversity-and-climate-action-through-rights-knowledge-and-governance

Photo credit: Nature and People as One - NAPO



IDRC / CRDI Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken Green Climate Fund Global Environment Facility Climate Policy Initiative African Development Bank Group Cris Robertson

14/05/2026

NEW BLOG: Forests at the centre of global action: Insights from practice as UNFF21 convenes 👉 https://cdkn.org/story/forests-centre-global-action-insights-practice-unff21-convenes

Forests are home to 80% of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity and support the livelihoods of over 1 billion people. Yet despite global commitments to halt and reverse deforestation by 2030, progress remains uneven.

As the 21st Session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF21) brings together governments, practitioners and partners to advance sustainable forest management, this blog written by Nadia Sitas, Mairi Dupar and Cris Robertson (he/him) reviews why effective forest conservation starts with local leadership.

CKDN’s work with local communities across the world has shown that:

🌱 In Benin, traditional governance systems are helping restore sacred forests
🌱 In Uganda, bamboo cultivation is reducing pressure on protected forests while strengthening livelihoods
🌱 In Honduras, farmer-to-farmer learning is accelerating sustainable agroforestry
🌱 In Kenya, youth-led conservation and mangrove restoration are linking biodiversity with economic opportunity
🌱 In Mozambique, women-led baobab enterprises are creating sustainable alternatives to charcoal production

These examples remind us that biodiversity loss is not only an environmental issue but that it is deeply connected to livelihoods.

📖 Read the full blog here: https://cdkn.org/story/forests-centre-global-action-insights-practice-unff21-convenes

IDRC / CRDI Cris Robertson

12/05/2026

CDKN’s case study on advancing gender equity and climate resilience through baobab fruit value chains has just been featured on PreventionWeb 👉 https://www.preventionweb.net/resource/case-study/advancing-gender-equity-and-climate-resilience-through-baobab-fruit-value

This case study by Andrew Kingman recently shared by our Knowledge-to-Action (K2A) grantee in Mozambique, MICAIA, draws on more than a decade of work by the Micaia Foundation and its partnership with Baobab Products Mozambique.

📖 Read the full case study here: https://www.preventionweb.net/resource/case-study/advancing-gender-equity-and-climate-resilience-through-baobab-fruit-value

Read more about Micaia’s work with CDKN 👉 https://cdkn.org/project/supporting-local-adaptation-efforts-leverage-scientific-and-indigenous-knowledge-western-mozambique

To learn more about CDKN’s K2A grantees in
Africa visit our website: https://cdkn.org/story/knowledge-climate-resilient-action-five-african-organisations-selected-cdkn-grants

IDRC / CRDI Cris Robertson

12/05/2026

🌎 Join CDKN's Prince Ansah and Valerie Kplorm Aku Nutakor at the first webinar of the PCCB Network Capacity-Building Series! 🌎
👉 Register here 👉 117d1878-409d-46a3-b723-7db7279e7446@2a6c12ad-406a-4f33-b686-f78ff5822208" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/117d1878-409d-46a3-b723-7db7279e7446@2a6c12ad-406a-4f33-b686-f78ff5822208

📅 29 May 2026
🕐 13:00–14:30 (UTC+2)

In this webinar, led by Climate and Development Knowledge Network Ghana, we ask how climate evidence can be turned into real, locally led action? Building on CDKN Ghana’s distinctive approach of using labs to translate complex climate evidence into accessible and actionable outputs, this virtual session introduces labs as a structured approach for connecting evidence to .

This is not a traditional webinar, this is a live, interactive co-creation experience where you actively design solutions with others.

💡What to expect:
✔ Hands-on co-creation in breakout groups
✔ Work with peers on real-world climate cases
✔ Structured facilitation to design solutions
✔ Peer exchange across regions and sectors

💻 Register here: 117d1878-409d-46a3-b723-7db7279e7446@2a6c12ad-406a-4f33-b686-f78ff5822208" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/117d1878-409d-46a3-b723-7db7279e7446@2a6c12ad-406a-4f33-b686-f78ff5822208

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UN Climate Change Cris Robertson Paris Committee on Capacity-building

06/05/2026

📢 NEW BLOG: Inclusion is strongest when intentional: Reflecting on the Climate Resilience for All webinar 👉 https://cdkn.org/story/inclusion-strongest-when-intentional-reflecting-climate-resilience-all-webinar 🌍

In April 2026, CDKN co‑hosted with the FFO - Funksjonshemmedes fellesorganisasjon a webinar on strengthening disability inclusion within GESI‑responsive climate action in Africa.

The webinar hosted a range of speakers active in the space of disability-inclusive climate action in Africa. They all highlighted the structural barriers that continue to marginalise persons with disabilities in climate decision‑making spaces, while also pointing to proven pathways for change.

📖 Read the full blog for all the insights shared: https://cdkn.org/story/inclusion-strongest-when-intentional-reflecting-climate-resilience-all-webinar

📽️ To learn more watch the recording from the webinar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nALaLFHj_hc

IDRC / CRDI Cris Robertson Agency for Disability and Development in Africa - ADDA Action on Disability and Women Empowerment Africa - ADWE Africa IDIWA NGO FAMOD Disability Rights Watch - DRW United Nations