One Planet Summit

One Planet Summit
Name	One Planet Summit
Founded	2017
Founders	Emmanuel Macron, Ban Ki-moon, Laurence Tubiana
Location	Paris

One Planet Summit is an international diplomatic initiative convened to accelerate global action on climate change and biodiversity with emphasis on finance, policy, and multilateral cooperation. Launched in Paris in 2017, the summit brings together leaders from European Union, United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, African Union and major national governments, as well as representatives from Non-Governmental Organization, Greenpeace International, World Wide Fund for Nature, Bloomberg Philanthropies and private sector actors. The initiative has intersected with major events such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Paris Agreement, G7 Summit and COP26.

Background and Origins

The summit was initiated against the backdrop of the Paris Agreement negotiations, the Sustainable Development Goals agenda steered by United Nations General Assembly, and the diplomatic legacy of figures like Emmanuel Macron, Ban Ki-moon, and Laurence Tubiana. Early proponents cited precedents in multilateral diplomacy including the Rio Earth Summit, the Kyoto Protocol negotiations, and the institutional reforms advocated by Christine Lagarde at the International Monetary Fund. Founding momentum drew on networks from European Commission, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank and philanthropic initiatives such as Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Objectives and Themes

Core objectives include mobilizing climate finance in line with commitments under the Paris Agreement, protecting biodiversity in the spirit of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and aligning public and private capital with the Sustainable Development Goals. Themes have ranged across climate mitigation linked to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change findings, adaptation echoing policy frameworks from United Nations Environment Programme, nature-based solutions promoted by Conservation International, and sustainable infrastructure championed by the World Bank Group and European Investment Bank. Cross-cutting priorities reference initiatives led by Climate Action Tracker, Global Environment Facility, International Renewable Energy Agency, and legal frameworks influenced by the International Court of Justice advisory discussions.

Participating Entities and Leadership

Summits convened heads of state such as Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel, Boris Johnson, Justin Trudeau, and leaders from China and India including delegations from Ministry of Environment offices. Institutional participants include United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, European Union, African Union Commission, G20 representatives, regional banks like Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and civil society groups including Friends of the Earth, WWF, Oxfam International and The Nature Conservancy. Private sector engagement featured corporations listed on the New York Stock Exchange, international banks such as Goldman Sachs, insurers like AXA, and philanthropic actors including Bloomberg Philanthropies and Rockefeller Foundation. Scientific and advisory contributions came from Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, International Energy Agency, Stockholm Environment Institute, and academic centers like Oxford University and Harvard University.

Major Summits and Key Outcomes

The inaugural 2017 summit in Paris produced pledges to scale up climate finance and commitments toward ending deforestation, aligning with outcomes from the COP21 process. Subsequent meetings, timed around events such as the G7 Summit and COP26, generated specific agreements on green bonds promoted by European Investment Bank, blue economy pledges referencing the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and adaptation funds similar to instruments established by the Green Climate Fund. Outcomes included policy statements that influenced national planning in France, United Kingdom, Germany, Kenya, and Indonesia, and catalyzed partnerships connecting multilateral development banks, sovereign funds, and private investors such as BlackRock and Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund. Collaborative projects tied to Conservation International and WWF targeted landscape restoration with reference to programs from the Global Environment Facility.

Financing Initiatives and Commitments

Financing commitments announced at summits involved multilateral institutions like the World Bank Group, bilateral contributions from countries including France, United States of America, Japan, Norway and pooled instruments resembling mechanisms at European Investment Bank. Initiatives emphasized blended finance models popularized by International Finance Corporation, green bonds issued on markets such as Euronext and London Stock Exchange, and insurance solutions influenced by Munich Re and Swiss Re. Philanthropic capital from entities like Bloomberg Philanthropies, Wellcome Trust, and Ford Foundation supplemented public funds. The summit also promoted reforms in standards paralleling work by Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures and investor coalitions such as Climate Action 100+ to reorient capital flows in line with the Paris Agreement.

Criticism and Controversies

Critics including activists from Extinction Rebellion, scholars at University of Oxford and NGOs like Friends of the Earth have argued that summit pledges lack binding mechanisms and mirror earlier shortfalls observed in Kyoto Protocol compliance. Commentators in publications such as The Guardian and Le Monde highlighted concerns about reliance on market-based instruments and private finance models favored by firms like BlackRock and Goldman Sachs. Debates involved transparency challenges similar to controversies at the World Bank and questions about debt sustainability raised by analysts linked to International Monetary Fund briefings. Environmental legal scholars compared accountability measures to those debated at the International Court of Justice and in European Court of Human Rights proceedings. Some governments and indigenous groups referenced the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in complaints about project consultations tied to summit-backed initiatives.

Category:International environmental conferences