The Global Environment Facility (GEF) Consultation with civil society organizations (CSOs) took place ahead of the 70th meeting of the GEF Council. It provided an opportunity for GEF Council members, the GEF Secretariat, and civil society leaders and representatives to reflect on progress toward the ninth replenishment cycle (GEF-9) and to consider how a whole-of-society approach can be embedded across GEF-9.
Opening the meeting, Gabriella Richardson Temm, Lead for Small Grants Program at the GEF, underscored the importance of the consultation, noting that it is the final meeting during the GEF-8 cycle. She emphasized that the discussions would provide an opportunity to consider how to strengthen whole-of-society implementation under GEF-9 and inform the third GEF-9 replenishment meeting scheduled for January 2026.
Adriana Moreira, Lead for the GEF Partnerships Division, then provided a stocktaking of GEF-8 approaches and targeted programs, emphasizing increased engagement with, and participation of, CSOs. She discussed the “substantially transformed” Small Grants Program (SGP), highlighting strong success in expanding the choice of GEF implementing agencies and its innovative new approaches, such as the CSO Challenge Program and Microfinancing Initiative.
Moreira further showcased improved engagement with:
- Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IPLCs), through the Inclusive Conservation Initiative (ICI) and Heart of Conservation Initiative, which, inter alia, provide direct funding to Indigenous Peoples organizations to implement biodiversity conservation efforts
- youth, through the Fonseca Leadership Program that aims to strengthen the next generation of conservation leaders through capacity building and training
- CSOs, by supporting their attendance at, and participation in, the conferences of the parties of the multilateral environmental agreements served by the GEF.
She highlighted the GEF’s intention to strengthen and scale up these efforts under GEF-9.
Sagar Aryal, Head of the CSO Network Technical Subcommittee, provided an overview and reflection on the GEF-9 whole-of-society approach, drawing on discussions from the CSO Consultations held in May 2025 and the Whole-of-Society Talks organized by the GEF CSO Network. He underscored convergence from these discussions that “whole-of-society” must be more than a paper commitment: it should operate as a practical delivery engine, moving beyond consultation and towards implementation.
Aryal highlighted that while GEF-9 signals strong policy ambition around a whole-of-society approach, greater commitment is needed to translate this into delivery. He identified persistent gaps, pointing to declining support for CSO-led projects, barriers to access for grassroots actors, and insufficient empowerment of IPLCs. He called for predictable and adequate funding, stronger representation of whole-of-society actors in decision making, and clearer mechanisms to match GEF-9 ambitions with budgetary allocations.
Facilitated Conversation Between Civil Society Negotiators and GEF Replenishment and Council Members
Moderated by Aryal, the session focused on facilitating access to finance for civil society, IPLCs, women, and youth during GEF-9. Richard Bontjer, GEF Council Member for Australia, highlighted the importance of a whole-of-society approach in achieving environmental and development targets, and of Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge in curbing biodiversity loss. He praised the SGP’s effectiveness in engaging civil society and called for increased financial allocation for it.
Bontjer noted that none of the GEF implementing agencies are Indigenous-led and proposed to enhance the effectiveness of existing implementing agencies in working with Indigenous Peoples, and selectively expanding the GEF partnership by bringing in new Agencies with expertise in collaborating with IPLCs. In line with GEF-9’s goal to increase risk appetite, he supported encouraging civil society to bring their projects forward to develop innovative approaches. Referencing recent GEF performance reports, he noted the GEF’s comparative advantages in supporting collaboration across multilateral agencies in the environmental and climate space; increased co-financing mobilization, stressing that more ambitious steps are needed; and concern that only 59% of projects show broad adoption.
Hoda Elshawadfy, GEF Replenishment Member for Egypt, called for increased financing for the SGP to support the inclusion of civil society and local communities throughout project lifecycles. She highlighted the need to balance the needs of the country and civil society, noting that her country dedicated 20% of its allocation directly to the SGP. To advance civil society participation under GEF-9, she proposed setting clear roles and expectations across partnerships and providing capacity building and support to non-governmental organizations. Finally, she called for increased private sector participation and efforts to achieve gender balance.
Faizal Parish, GEF CSO Network Chair, underscored the significance of traditional knowledge in addressing the triple planetary crisis. While highlighting the value of existing mechanisms such as the SGP and ICI, he stressed the need to empower civil society across the entire GEF program and portfolio. Parish noted that the ICI was oversubscribed by more than 80 times, reflecting significant unmet demand, and called for increasing the replenishment target from $5.4 billion to $7.5 billion to keep up with funding needs. He indicated that a higher risk-tolerance approach can empower local communities and civil society and support experimentation, necessary for discovering innovative and high-impact approaches.
Carlos Manuel Rodríguez, CEO and Chairperson, GEF, underscored the importance of increasing CSO involvement, stating that for the GEF to achieve its institutional mandate, it must work with everyone who is part of the solution. He stressed that CSOs set an expectation for the sustainability of GEF’s investments and portfolios. He stated there must be a clear role and expectation for what CSO engagement will look like, noting that a whole-of-society approach will guide comprehensive CSO inclusion and utilization.
Rodríguez urged the expansion and simplification of finance for community-led actions, emphasizing that GEF-9 represents a transition toward a more effective model of cooperation that can demonstrate the value of a whole-of-society approach. He noted that combining whole-of-society and whole-of-government approaches will help sustain GEF programming over time. Acknowledging that internal dynamics may differ for GEF-10, he stressed the importance of placing non-state actors at the center of GEF action now.
In the subsequent discussion, speakers responded to questions and comments from participants. Rodríguez underscored the SGP’s role in piloting a whole-of-society approach and highlighted emerging windows of opportunity, such as blended finance. On accessing GEF funds for civil society, he recommended engaging with operational focal points and building a relationship with them, noting there is now a budget line to support their work.
On supporting the vision of youth and improving collaboration with the CSO network, Parish said a key reform for countries is the establishment of national steering committees for the GEF, and that CSO representation on these is needed. This reform, he noted, is already underway and in place in some countries. He highlighted the importance of recognizing that IPLCs have the right to self-determination.
Closing the meeting, Rodríguez stressed that the GEF must recognize the role of CSOs in leading solutions, with governments and the private sector complementing these efforts to achieve progress.
Event Recording
Written summary provided by IISD Earth Negotiations Bulletin.