Introduction SEPTEMBER 2020 As our financial year drew to a close in February 2020, the terms the heart of Cool Earth’s approach as the evidence that autonomous unprecedented, lockdown and new-normal were yet to enter rights-holders are the best rainforest custodians is overwhelming. everyone’s daily vocabulary. Cool Earth’s 2019 work detailed in this report may in some ways feel like another era altogether. In Whilst the Covid-19 pandemic has stalled many things, it has reality our mission remains unchanged, and we are committed to accelerated Cool Earth’s strategic thinking. The team is using this supporting local communities to protect their rainforest no matter if time to reaffirm our mission to put people first, to protect their trees, we are in a time of global crisis or calm. to support self-determining communities and utilise the very best forest monitoring innovations. In recent months, the global landscape has changed beyond recognition. Cool Earth has met this challenge head on, pivoting As Cool Earth grows, we are grateful to all those who join in our towards new and innovative approaches in both fundraising and fight against deforestation. With steadfast support of smart partners programme delivery. like Rentokil Initial, we’ll continue to help find the best ways to keep forest standing, and ensure the conversation about conservation In May, with the support of innovative business partners like doesn’t stop. Rentokil Initial, Cool Earth launched the Rainforest Resilience Fund in response to the current pandemic. With Rentokil generously Thank you to all at Rentokil Initial, for knowing that investing in covering project overheads for this campaign, we were able to community-led conservation is the smartest climate action there is. engage not only current supporters, but reach a far wider audience and exceed our targets to meet the urgent needs of people in the I hope you find Cool Earth’s 2019 Annual Review an informative most difficult of circumstances. and engaging read. Relationships with our local NGO partners are stronger than ever, thanks to the focus on building resilience, empowering local leadership and programme delivery in 2019, detailed in the review below. Building resilience against deforestation will always be at Matthew Owen, Director COOL EARTH X RENTOKIL INITIAL 2019/20 REVIEW 2 Not up for debate: Climate change is happening The destruction of rainforest is undeniably at the core of the most pressing challenges facing our world today. Zoonotic diseases like Covid -19 continue to emerge amidst rainforest degradation, and rising emissions from deforestation are already affecting those most vulnerable to the effects of extreme weather. Indigenous people and rainforest communities live in high-risk environments where the impact of climate change is already being felt. Recognising local people’s impact on conservation, land stewardship and climate mitigation is essential. Practitioners of inherited, ancient ways of relating to the natural environment, indigenous people protect almost 22% of Earth’s surface containing 80% of global biodiversity. With Rentokil Initial’s support, this makes them the most powerful stakeholders when responding to both climate change and conservation challenges. If we are to successfully tackle climate breakdown and protect Earth’s environment, we must commit to promoting and protecting the rights of the world’s indigenous populations. COOL EARTH X RENTOKIL INITIAL 2019/20 REVIEW 3 "Indigenous, local, and traditional knowledge systems and practices, including indigenous peoples’ holistic view of community and environment, are a major resource for adapting to climate change." - IPCC Fifth Assessment Report Image by Huber Ccayaz Cruz, Tinkareni COOL EARTH X RENTOKIL INITIAL 2019/20 REVIEW 4 Making Earth Cool Again Protecting rainforest is one of the most effective actions we can take to tackle climate breakdown. Rainforests store carbon, regulate water cycles, and protect millions of species of plants and animals. All of us rely on Earth’s ecosystems standing strong for our survival, to slow global emissions and to avoid critical rises in temperature. “To avoid the worst of climate change, and in some cases to adapt to its impacts, it is necessary to conserve and restore forests.”¹ - Tony Juniper, Cool Earth trustee Tropical forests have the highest carbon density of all forest types due to their ability for vast carbon sequestration. The planet’s rainforests are capable of providing 23% of cost - effective climate mitigation needed by 2030 to avoid climate catastrophe. Deforestation releases as much carbon into the atmosphere as the global transport sector and destroys the best carbon capture and carbon storage technology we have. ¹ Juniper, T, This Pandemic is an environmental issue, Evening Standard, May 2020 COOL EARTH X RENTOKIL INITIAL 2019/20 REVIEW 5 Cool Earth in 2019 With help to develop climate, financial and social resilience, local people are the greatest rainforest custodians. Their knowledge is essential when developing effective strategies that tackle the adverse impacts of climate change. Cool Earth works from the ground up to address financial and social inequalities that indigenous and rainforest communities face in order to keep trees standing. Effective conservation is possible when local people who are uniquely suited to manage, protect, and restore rainforest are put first. By sharing local knowledge, Cool Earth is helping to develop the best ways to protect rainforest around the world. 56,493,779 ESTIMATED TREES IN OUR PARTNERSHIPS 44,545,905 TONNES OF CARBON FOUND IN THESE TREES 13 COMMUNITY-LED PARTNERSHIPS These stats are based on 2019 data and will change according to annual analysis by Cool Earth. COOL EARTH X RENTOKIL INITIAL 2019/20 REVIEW 6 "In another 30 years we might not find bears or any other animals. There won’t be any left. So we need to get together with friends to learn about forest preservation." - Jaime Peña, Tinkareni COOL EARTH X RENTOKIL INITIAL 2019/20 REVIEW 7 Biodiversity: Leaping into Action Rising atmospheric carbon. Wildlife extinction. Cool Earth’s biodiversity officers in Wabumari, news that the forest food chain is healthy The hole in the ozone layer. Climate change is, Papua New Guinea, use camera traps to and that many species continue to thrive. predominantly, invisible. This intangibility is a help community members keep an eye on The results also showed more frogs at higher vast challenge for society. the wildlife that shares their forest. But, with elevations. With temperature-sensitive species increasingly severe and unpredictable weather around the tropics seeking higher, cooler With Earth’s climate increasingly out of events, the community were keen to do more altitudes due to climate change, it’s vital to balance, people are turning to nature for signs to monitor local wildlife. keep rainforest habitat exactly as it is. that monitor change and inform subsequent climate action. That’s when Clifford Peter Yaee, a final-year “In Papua New Guinea, youths student from the local University of Goroka Sometimes, these signs are hidden under the happened to get in touch, to do just that. are the backbone of society. damp undergrowth and lush treetops of Papua Seeing the opportunity for a mutual benefit, Involve them to take ownership of New Guinea’s rainforest. the community invited him to conduct his the project and they will protect our research in their forest. Many species like frogs and other amphibians forest and natural environment.” have a very high sensitivity to even the Clifford’s enthusiasm and fieldwork sparked smallest habitat and climate alteration². As a great interest in the community. Following a - Clifford Peter Yaee result populations of frogs are now declining, presentation on methods of surveying and the with an estimated half of all 6,300 known links between frogs and climate monitoring, Thanks to Renotkil Initial’s funding, wildlife species threatened with extinction³. most of Wabumari participated in the frog monitoring activities like this raise community search. GPS devices, head torches and members’ awareness about the species This susceptibility makes them a key indicator umbrellas at the ready, they spread across sharing their forest and reinforce their role species; nature’s early warning system on the different elevations of the forest, recording the as environmental custodians. Local research health of the planet. Tracking frog populations species as they went. helps raise global awareness that climate at different altitudes gives a good idea of change isn’t an invisible catastrophe anymore. how climate breakdown is affecting Earth’s Despite only searching for four hours, a large It is having an impact on those with least smallest fauna. number of frogs were found. It’s reassuring capacity to adapt, and it’s happening now. ² IPCC. (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Part A: Global and Sectoral Aspects. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. ³ Marent, T. and Jackson, T. (2008). Frog. London: Dorling Kindersley. COOL EARTH X RENTOKIL INITIAL 2019/20 REVIEW 8 Community: Toilets that tackle deforestation Deforestation isn’t all bulldozers and beefburgers. It’s a broken leg. It’s needing cash to send your kids to school. It’s waste polluting your crops and causing sickness in your village. That’s why Cool Earth doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all approach. We’re there to help if community members fall ill without access to clean, safe sanitation. In Wabumari, Papua New Guinea, 94% of households lacked access to clean water. No toilets meant frequent contamination to the beach and land. With Rentokil Initial’s funding, eight water tanks have now been built to collect and store rainfall for use in the dry season. Three community members from Wabumari received training from ATprojects to build long-drop toilets and flooding-resistant waste systems. With a reduction in contaminated water, community health has improved and crop yields will increase.