Defenders still - world and hands

Challenging abuses of power to protect human rights and secure the future of our planet

Investigations and advocacy to achieve climate justice and safeguard civic freedoms. Find out more about our work

Briefing Document | October 17, 2024

COP16: Aligning biodiversity with human rights and climate action

The choices and actions taken at COP16 in Colombia will impact the biodiversity crisis and its link to the climate emergency. Now more than ever, world leaders must take transformative action to deliver their pledges

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Top stories

Article
British financiers funneled over £1 billion into "forest-risk" companies despite COP26 pledges

UK banks have provided over £1 billion ($1.4bn) to 'forest-risk’ companies since world leaders signed a landmark agreement to end deforestation by the end of the decade at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow in 2021
Blog post
Biodiversity and forest defenders – the stakes of COP16

The Colombian Government has a historic opportunity to make the Convention on Biological Diversity COP16 a turning point for both biodiversity and those who protect it – and to live up to its promises to place defenders' voices at the centre of the agenda.

Top stories

Blog post
The biodiversity crisis cannot end until governments tackle deforestation financing at home

As world leaders return from COP15 in Montreal, we're asking them to put plans before their parliaments to stop the flow of money from big banks to the companies destroying our vital tropical forests, home to an estimated 80% of the world’s biodiversity
Blog post
CBD COP16 events: Putting people at the center of biodiversity protection

As world leaders gather in Cali, Colombia for the 16th Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP16), Global Witness is championing putting people at the heart of environmental conservation.

About us

Our world is in crisis: climate breakdown, corporations too powerful to hold to account and democracies teetering on the brink.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

Our goal is a more sustainable, just and equal planet. We want climate-critical forests and biodiversity to thrive and fossil fuels to stay in the ground. We want corporations to respect the planet and human rights, governments to protect and listen to their citizens, and the online world to be free from misinformation and hate.

Find out more about our work

Latest Investigations

Article | October 29, 2024
Scores of suspicious accounts on X promote the Azerbaijan government’s messages on COP
Article | October 17, 2024
Before US election, TikTok and Facebook fail to block harmful disinformation. YouTube succeeds
Article | October 16, 2024
British financiers funneled over £1 billion into "forest-risk" companies despite COP26 pledges
Article | October 08, 2024
The price of beauty: Popular collagen brands drive deforestation and rights abuses in Paraguay
Article | September 25, 2024
Climate tax on Big Oil’s past emissions could raise over $1 trillion for Loss & Damage Fund
Article | September 26, 2024
Barclays earned $1.7bn from company tied to Indigenous land invasion
Article | September 23, 2024
Disinformation dollars: How Google earns money from and funds articles that promote climate denial
Long Read | September 10, 2024
Missing voices

Long Read | July 24, 2024

Annual report 2023: Challenging polluters, championing people

Marking three decades of protecting people and planet

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Latest explainers

Article | October 30, 2024
What’s in a hurricane name? Storm Chevron batters US coast
Blog Post | September 30, 2024
How does the Loss and Damage Fund work for climate justice?
Blog Post | July 10, 2024
Transition minerals: A climate solution that could cost the earth
Blog Post | February 21, 2024
What is the Cerrado – and why is it important for our planet?