BAKU, Azerbaijan, Nov. 21, 2024 — The Rockefeller Foundation announced a $500,000 grant to Health In Harmony (HIH) during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku. This funding aims to catalyze private sector investments in climate mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.
HIH, a global nonprofit, collaborates with Indigenous Peoples and local communities in regions such as Indonesia, Panama, Brazil, Madagascar, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The grant will enhance the connection between environmental conservation and human health by investing in solutions from rainforest communities in the Brazilian Amazon.
Despite Indigenous communities being crucial stewards of the land, less than 1% of global climate finance currently reaches them. The Rockefeller Foundation's initiative seeks to mobilize private sector resources for community-centered climate solutions.
Ashley Emerson, co-CEO of HIH, emphasized the need for financing models that support community-driven solutions, stating, "Indigenous solutions provide unparalleled benefits for carbon and biodiversity protection, yet they are extremely underfunded."
The grant will also support market infrastructure to promote accountability and integrity in climate solutions, alongside advancing carbon and biodiversity monitoring in collaboration with various research organizations.
Maria Kozloski, Senior Vice President of Innovative Finance at The Rockefeller Foundation, remarked, "Nature's health determines people's health," stressing the importance of investing in nature for community well-being.
This grant is part of a broader effort by The Rockefeller Foundation to address climate change and biodiversity loss, which includes supporting reforestation projects and mobilizing private capital for ecological restoration.