In 2014, world leaders pledged to end deforestation by 2030. Yet over a decade later, forests continue to fall, finance continues to flow in the wrong direction, and the gap between promises and delivery has only widened.
That is why the 2030 Global Forest Vision exists: to leverage the expertise of civil society and research organizations and to unite leaders and decision-makers around a focused agenda that moves us from words to deeds. Earlier this year, in March, we launched the Priority Actions for Governments in 2025—a clear agenda for how policymakers must reform subsidies, strengthen land rights, and create the enabling conditions for forest-positive economies.
This week in New York, less than two months before world leaders gather in Belém for COP30, we launched the Priority Actions for Deforestation- and Conversion-Free Finance. This new agenda turns to the financial system—arguably the most powerful lever of all. If governments provide the signals, and supervisors set the rules, financial institutions can align capital flows with forest protection rather than destruction.
The new Priority Actions call for:
- Governments to reform fiscal policy, provide long-term signals, deploy catalytic public finance, and break the debt–deforestation cycle.
- Central banks and supervisors to issue clear expectations, strengthen disclosure requirements, assess systemic risks, and lead by example in their own portfolios.
- Financial institutions to strengthen portfolio resilience and client transition, advocate for enabling policy frameworks, and allocate capital to sustainable agriculture and land use.
Together with the government actions, these finance actions provide a coherent pathway for aligning both public and private financial flows with global forest, climate, and biodiversity goals.
This is also the spirit of mutirão, which the COP30 Presidency in Brazil has rightly elevated: the recognition that ending deforestation is not the responsibility of one actor alone, but requires collective effort and shared accountability. Mutirão means rolling up our sleeves and working together to finally deliver on the promises we've made—rather than making new ones.
Momentum is building. On September 23, at the United Nations in New York, Brazil announced a USD 1 billion contribution to the Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF)—the first country to pledge support for its own flagship initiative, a Global South–led endowment to protect standing tropical forests. Lula’s call for others to match this ambition has already been echoed by partners from Norway, the UAE, and beyond. This is the spirit of mutirão in action: Brazil leading by example and inviting others to join in collective effort.
More governments are also stepping up collectively. Before yesterday's launch of the Priority Actions for DCF Finance, the Forest and Climate Leaders’ Partnership (FCLP)—a coalition of 34 national governments—released its Forest Finance Roadmap for Action. Among the actions highlighted in this joint, North-South framework are some steps that could be truly transformative if implemented—including sovereign debt reform and redirecting subsidies.
With COP30 just weeks away, the message could not be clearer: the world does not need more declarations. It needs delivery. It needs governments to align fiscal policy, supervisors to set expectations, and financial institutions to direct capital toward forest-positive transitions. It needs civil society to continue holding all actors accountable. And it needs all of us—together—to act with urgency.
The Priority Actions for DCF Finance are practical, timely, and actionable steps to close the implementation gap and make the 2030 forest goals achievable.
The time to deliver is now.
