Please email me any fun April Fools you see. In need of a good laugh after the geopolitical state of Q1 2026. Lets hope Q2 is slightly less intense. Send on to your friends, and subscribe here.
‘Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results’ experts reflect as nearly 30% of global trade in key fossil fuel dependent agricultural fertilisers are choked off by the Iran war. From India to Minnesota, farmers and consumers are facing the consequences. Fertiliser profits surged over 36% at the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine war.
*30%: total fossil fuel reliant agricultural inputs impacted by closing the Strait of Hormuz
*41%: increase in ammonia fertilisers prices in the US compared to last March
*90%: amount of Middle-Eastern nitrogen fertiliser Ethiopia relies upon
*45 million: number of additional people that could be pushed into food insecurity
*20%: food price increase in Somalia already due to Iran conflict
As the EU bats away requests to make fertilisers exempt from its new border tax on high emissions commodities (CBAM), 13 countries have committed to boost the nature friendly farming practices that will help get them off the fertiliser-price rollercoaster. Key exporters such as Brazil and Kenya are among the countries replacing chemical fertilisers with agroecological practices in an effort to ‘create a food system that can cope with market volatility and climate shocks’ and ‘protect farmers and consumers’. Around the world the farming revolution is catching on, and working.
*Andhra Pradesh, India: for nearly 2 million farmers incomes increased 38%, and yields of key crops grew 14% when chemicals were swapped for biodiversity and natural stimulants
*Kenya: roughly 15000 farmers reduced dependence on fertilisers by 60% and saw a 30% increase in incomes
*Mexico: agroecological farmers reduced spending and saw yield increases of 30-50%
*600 Billion in socio-economic outcomes like stabilised food supply and health benefits to be gained from agroecology
The latest ‘State of Europe’s Forests’ report (SoEF) - released every 5 years - fails to be completely honest, according to experts. Dig a little deeper and you’ll find that Europe’s forests are fairing relatively poorly. Logging is on the up, despite jobs stagnating and the economy not benefiting, and tree growth is slowing. The SoEF is supposed to kick policy makers into action as EU member states prepare to submit new plans for restoring nature by September. A rose tinted SoEF could make for rose tinted action plans.
Brazil is doubling down on tackling deforestation in its latest national climate plan. But on the international stage, the weight being thrown behind a deforestation roadmap doesn’t feel like it’s quite matching that of fossil fuel efforts. Consultations close this week on what the roadmap should look like. Another long report on the risks to forests would be less than ideal. It needs actionable outcomes on trade, financial flows, and tackling barriers such as subsidies, insecure land tenure and debt constraints.
*3x: increase in borrowing costs for low-income countries with high nature degradation
*$7: for every $1 spent on mangrove protection and restoration in the US, it saves $7 in flooding and wildfire costs
*50%: how much of EUs methane comes from agriculture, as science advisors report a need for drastic cuts to meet climate goals
Another big boss from the nature-dependent pharma sector has seen a mind boggling pay hike of USD$21 million. Meanwhile the Cali Fund - established last year to collect 1% of profits from sectors like pharma profiting from nature’s genetics for free - still only has USD$1,000 in it. As AGM season approaches, corporate nature finance is critically low, despite some sectors set to lose 25% of profits in the next 5 years due to nature loss. The UN Biodiversity Summit COP17 at the end of the year will be the first test for whether governments will allow the Cali Fund to sink in an age of ‘Zombie Funds’.
April carries historic weight in Brazil for Indigenous Peoples, marking the start of the Portuguese colonisation. Next week thousands of Indigenous leaders come together for the country’s largest Indigenous Assembly. “Our future is not for sale” is the theme of the Acampamento Terra Livre 2026. Leaders aim to confront a wave of legislative proposals in Congress perceived as weakening Indigenous rights, denouncing injustice ahead of what is expected to be a polarising election. Contact the press team for more.
The UN and other international agencies have launched an emergency plan across Central America to buffer farmers and consumers against price spikes in corn, bean, and rice in the ‘dry corridor’. With scientists predicting an El Niño event is on its way, farmers and consumers are nervous. A 2015 El Niño wiped out 60% of corn crops and left over a million people needing food aid.
USD $100 million has been invested in the first International Nature Bond over the last week, issued by the Central American development bank - BCIE. The money generated will be invested back into nature protection and restoration across the region.
Chile’s most far-right President in 35 years tried to mess with the wrong frog last month whilst delivering on promises to slash regulation. He announced the suspension of 43 rules to safeguard the environment, but reinstated protection for Darwin’s Frog after intense scientific backlash.
Trump has called his ‘God Squad’ into action this week - a more middle aged, less ripped, and less heroic version of the Avengers whose main mission is to possibly destroy biodiversity. The meeting yesterday chose to override the Endangered Species Act to allow fossil fuel exploration off the Gulf of Mexico. The Iran war was used to validate the decision.
A previously suppressed assessment of how the USA’s biodiversity is fairing has been released independently for scientific review, and it’s not looking good. Meanwhile new research shows that 89% of Americans agree there should be no cuts to nature funding, even during federal budget problems.
*5 - 11: ALT Indigenous Gathering 2026, Brazil
*13 - 18: World Bank Spring Meetings
*14: Forum for the future of Agriculture, Brussels
*20 - 22: International Health and Climate Conference, Canada
*21 - 22: Petersberg Climate Dialogue
*22: Future of Food LEAP Conference, Oxford
*22: World Earth Day
*22 - 24: World Summit on Food, Agriculture and Animal Sciences, Amsterdam
*27 - 28: International Conference on Environmental Sustainability, Germany
*28 - 29: Transition Away from Fossil Fuels Summit, Santa Marta
*27 - 29: World Health Summit regional meeting, Kenya
Any tips, thoughts, comments - drop me a Whatsapp (+447923098591) or an email (Lindsay.smith@gsccnetwork.org)
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