In this episode, we talk with Carlos Manuel Rodríguez, CEO and Chairperson of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), who explains what this institution is and its purpose: to serve as the financial mechanism that supports developing countries in implementing the environmental commitments of several United Nations conventions.
Carlos Manuel shares how the GEF has evolved over the past 30 years. In its early years, projects were developed in a fragmented way, addressing each convention separately. However, in the past decade, the organization has adopted a far more integrated and systemic approach, seeking to tackle environmental challenges through multiple interconnected fronts. Throughout the conversation, he highlights the importance of learning from successful projects to influence public policy improvement and the need to strengthen more effective environmental governance.
Among the examples he mentions is the GEF Payment for Environmental Services program, which has supported rural communities in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Colombia to protect watersheds, increase biomass and biodiversity, and contribute to carbon sequestration. He also refers to a solar energy project in a remote community in the Sahel region of Senegal, which has had a significant and tangible social, environmental, and economic impact. Rodríguez further reflects on the challenges of current political systems, pointing out the lack of coherence among government sectors and the paradox of short-term decision-making that undermines long-term sustainability goals. He also emphasizes the global crisis of political leadership and the unsustainability of current food production systems.
The interview concludes with a profound reflection on the urgency of transforming educational paradigms, preparing new generations with a more conscious and committed vision toward planetary sustainability.
“We need a systemic change in how we produce food on this planet to stop climate change and halt biodiversity loss.”
Carlos Manuel Rodríguez is the CEO and Chairperson of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) since June 2020, former Minister of Environment and Energy of Costa Rica, and former Vice President for Global Policy at Conservation International. He pioneered initiatives such as Payments for Ecosystem Services for forest restoration, ocean conservation, and decarbonization. He is an internationally recognized expert in environmental policy, multilateral environmental negotiations, and conservation finance.
