Days before the United Nations COP25 Climate Summit, Regeneration International took part in “The Inner Dimensions of Climate Change,” held at the UN building in Bangkok. The event gathered young environmental activists who came together with one common message: “If we want to reverse the current climate catastrophe, we must reconnect with nature.”

Agave plants and nitrogen-fixing trees densely intercropped and cultivated together have the capacity to draw down massive amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere and produce more above ground and below ground biomass (and animal fodder) on a continuous year-to-year basis than any other desert and semi-desert species.  Ideal for arid and hot climates, agaves and their companion trees, once established, require little or no irrigation to survive and thrive, and are basically impervious to rising global temperatures and drought.

Our Madrid delegation carried the Regeneration International banner at the official COP25 event, participating in official events, representing Regeneration International at the 4 per 1000 Initiative meeting and strengthening our network and partnerships. Though our Madrid delegation was small, Precious Phiri, steering committee member and director of our work in Africa, said it generated “amazing synergy” and was able to have a presence at all the right events and to serve as a bridge between the meetings in Chile and those in Madrid.

Some members of our team are in Madrid this week, to help kick off the official COP25 global climate summit. But many of us are in Santiago, Chile. Chile was supposed to host COP25—until mass protests, triggered by social and economic injustices, forced a last-minute change in venue. Rather than abandon our South American allies in the Regeneration Movement, we chose to follow through with plans, initiated early in 2019, for strategy and training sessions to bring regenerative solutions to a country in crisis.

Regeneration International is currently working with the League of Organic Agriculture Municipalities, Cities and Provinces of the Philippines (LOAMCP) to advise the organization on climate strategy and education around regenerative agriculture, and to promote LOAMCP’s initiatives around the globe.