UNEP
In Mexico, UNEP is helping conservationists raise king crabs. The animals are voracious consumers of algae, which is infesting sensitive coral reefs as the ocean warms due to climate change
Financing biodiversity
We are the first generation to fully understand the immense threats to the land – and might be the last one with a chance to reverse the course of destruction.
Elizabeth Maruma Mrema
UNEP Deputy Executive Director
Elizabeth Maruma Mrema
UNEP Deputy Executive Director
In 2024, 22 signatories joined the UNEP FI-led Principles for Responsible Banking, which supports banks as they align their core business with the Sustainable Development Goals and environmental accords like the GBF. More than 350 lenders – representing half of the world’s banking assets – have adopted the principles and are putting sustainable finance targets in place.
Meanwhile, the Global Fund for Coral Reefs financed efforts to protect 1.7 million hectares of coral reefs, which are under threat from multiple stressors, in 13 countries. The fund supported Indonesia in launching a landmark US$35 million debt-for-nature swap, Mexico in countering a seaweed epidemic that is smothering coral reefs and the Philippines in improving the management of marine protected areas. The fund’s work in 2024 is expected to benefit around 15,000 people through training and job creation. UNEP is the global monitoring and evaluation lead for the fund and co-chair of its executive board.