COP28 - WHY MANGROVES ARE HAVING THEIR MOMENT

HEADLINE:  COP28: WHY MANGROVES ARE HAVING THEIR MOMENT
DURATION:  05:32
SOURCE:  NATURE POSITIVE
RESTRICTIONS:  ACCESS ALL PLATFORMS IN PERPETUITY; NO ARCHIVE RESALES

INTRO:

At COP28 where world leaders, policy makers and NGOs are gathered, pressure is on for negotiators to support the role that nature plays in restoring balance to our climate.  And there is one nature-based solution that seems to be finally having its moment… mangroves.  At panel discussions, roundtables and workshops - the conversation keeps coming back to these neglected superstars of our natural world.

STORYLINE

Mangroves support biodiversity and supply seafood at capacities large enough to feed millions of people. Fisheries, economies and communities across the world are dependent on the restoration and protection of these vital ecosystems. They act as natural barriers to protect shorelines from erosion and can reduce wave height by up to 66%. In addition they act as vast carbon sinks, absorbing up to five times more carbon than land-based forests. They have the potential to sequester 24m tonnes of carbon per year, the equivalent to the annual emissions of France or Poland.

Yet mangroves are one of the most under-protected and threatened ecosystems on the planet.  Mangrove restoration and protection receives approximately 1% of climate finance. And logging for timber and charcoal, tourism, agriculture and aquaculture have all led to an alarming loss of global mangrove cover. If things carry on as they are, every unprotected mangrove forest will disappear by the end of this century.

But mangroves are finally in the spotlight.  First launched at COP27 in Egypt a year ago, The Mangrove Breakthrough has gained momentum throughout the year.  Signed by 21 countries in Dubai, itt now aims to secure the future of 15 million hectares of mangrove forests by 2030 by unlocking USD 4million. It’s a collaboration of governments, philanthropy, private sector, financial institutions and NGOs all coming together to halt loss, restore half, double protection and insure sustainable finance for mangroves.

The UAE has launched a highly published plan to plant 100 million mangroves across the country by 2030.  The host of COP28 is fully committed to enhancing its most precious ecosystem which has been badly damaged by coastal urbanisation in recent years.  WWF in the Emirates is behind a programme to plant 50,000 mangrove trees and restore associated ecosystems. The programme will also restore local biodiversity as the mangroves are home to endangered species of turtles, seabirds, sharks and rays. Local communities are onboard to ensure the long term success of the project.

While mangroves are having their moment at COP, it is hoped that this is just the start - the  talk needs to turn into action and long term support for the entire coastal ecosystems that they are a part of.

Mangrove Shot List 

1. WS - COP28 Dubai Mangrove Breakthrough announcement conference hall - 9th December 2023
2. WS - COP28 Dubai Mangrove Breakthrough announcement conference hall - 9th December 2023
3. MCU - COP28 Dubai Mangrove Breakthrough announcement conference hall - close up- 9th December 2023 - 
4. People arriving COP28 Dubai Mangrove Breakthrough announcement conference hall - 9th December 2023
5. Introduction to H.E.Mariam Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, UAE - 9th December 2023
6. Introduction to H.E.Mariam Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, UAE - 9th December 2023
7. SOT H.E.Mariam Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, UAE

“A wonderful afternoon everybody, Excellencies, friends of mangroves. Laura you couldn’t have explained it better.  Really I want to thank you all for being her, welcome to the UAE and yes same as we have had for food and health, we have a day dedicated to Nature, Land Use and Oceans which we are very excited about. So recognising the crucial role that nature plays, we have embarked on an ambitious journey to plant 100million mangroves by 2030”

8. People walking around COP28 (outdoor)
9. People sat on and around bench COP28 (outdoor)
10. People walking around COP28 (outdoor)
11. Inside Plenary at COP28
12. People walking around COP28
13. People walking around COP28
14. Handshake at COP28
15. SOT JENNIFER MORRIS CEO OF THE NATURE CONSERVANCY

“Mangroves are essential for life on earth for fisherman, for all of us, it is the uber ecosystem and I know that is why you all got up very early”

16 .  WS Jennifer Morris on podium

17.  Jennifer Morris sits down in Nature Pavilion

18. Shot of Sun Rising on River lined with Mangroves

19. Aerial shot of canoe traveling along river lined by Mangroves

20. 2nd Aerial shot of canoe traveling along river lined by Mangroves

21. 3rd Aerial shot of canoe traveling along river lined by Mangroves

22. 4th Aerial shot of canoe traveling along river lined by Mangroves

23.Man in boat tying fishing device in midst of Mangroves

24.  Man paddling boat through mangroves 

25. Shot of Boat speeding along river lined by Mangroves

26.  SOUNDBITE EMILY LANDIS, CLIMATE AND OCEAN LEAD TNC (ENGLISH)

“So they really do everything for the ocean and for people in the communities that live around them. So when we think about, you know, carbon dioxide and carbon dioxide removal, mangrove ecosystems can do more than 5 to 9 times than the tropical rainforest per hectare.  So it makes it a pretty, pretty big climate solution.”

“Right now we're experiencing what we call a mangrove moment. And it's been great to partner with the UAE on this. They have launched a Global Mangrove Alliance for Climate.  They have been strong supporters of The Mangrove Breakthrough, which is a coalition led $4 billion investment by 2030 to safeguard 15 million hectares of mangroves. And the UAE has committed to be part of that through their MAC program”

“You know, it has to be a seascape approach. You can't just plant a mangrove. It has to be what is the hydrology behind you? What's the ocean doing in front of you If you put in the mangrove just hoping everything's going to be fine, they will die.  So it's really about making sure these commitments are actionable and you see permanence and they will be there 50 years from now, 100 years from now”

“Right now we are not seeing enough action on mangroves. What we are seeing right now is a lot of momentum to action. So what we really need to see after this COP is commitment to seeing action on the ground, to actual hectares and to financial commitments, not just through NGOs butto the local communities.

27.  SOUNDBITE MANUEL PULGAR VIDAL GLOBAL LEADER OF CLIMATE & ENERGY AT WWF

“Mangrove is a so important ecosystem because it is a carbon sink. A so important carbon sink.  Also an important ecosystem so this COP we are expecting to have clarity in halting loss of mangrove but also doubling our effort to protect it and to restore mangrove. That is a key element”

28.  MARINA ANTONOPOULOU, SENIOR DIRECTOR – CONSERVATION, CLIMATE & ENERGY, EMIRATES-WWF

“So mangroves are perhaps the flagship habitat that has received the most loss and pressure from humanity at coastal areas. So coastal areas are the areas that the world likes to live in.  So you know coastal development in some parts of the world mangroves have been directly harvested for wood or for fisheries. In this part of the world, it is more about the urbanisation and the extension of our cities that have been pressurising our coastal ecosystems.  But there is hope”

“Mangroves are having a historical moment here at COP 28. There's a lot of announcements about the importance to deploy best practises  and science based interventions on the ground to restore but also to conserve the mangrove ecosystems”.