Asia Pacific Natural Climate Solutions Technical Assistance Facility
Quantedge Advancement Initiative is supporting Conservation International Asia-Pacific’s Natural Climate Solutions Technical Assistance Facility that provides funding to develop a pipeline of high-quality natural climate solutions (NCS) projects in Asia-Pacific.
The protection, restoration and improved management of natural ecosystems can contribute significantly to climate mitigation efforts. They also provide a range of important co-benefits, such as sustainable livelihoods for local communities and increase in biodiversity. Despite this, NCS projects currently only receive 3% of global climate funding. Coupled with an increase in demand for nature-based carbon credits in recent years, there has been a relative under-supply of high-quality NCS projects in the region.
The Technical Assistance Facility is a grant-based recycling finance facility that provides both technical and financial support to NCS projects in the early stages of development. The Facility supports project design and capacity building in areas such as technical, scientific, policy and communications capabilities, which raises the quality of the NCS projects. It also fills the early-stage financing gap where many NCS projects with potential for impact lack upfront capital needed for pre-feasibility, feasibility, or development activities of the projects.
The protection, restoration and improved management of natural ecosystems can contribute significantly to climate mitigation efforts. They also provide a range of important co-benefits, such as sustainable livelihoods for local communities and increase in biodiversity. Despite this, NCS projects currently only receive 3% of global climate funding. Coupled with an increase in demand for nature-based carbon credits in recent years, there has been a relative under-supply of high-quality NCS projects in the region.
The Technical Assistance Facility is a grant-based recycling finance facility that provides both technical and financial support to NCS projects in the early stages of development. The Facility supports project design and capacity building in areas such as technical, scientific, policy and communications capabilities, which raises the quality of the NCS projects. It also fills the early-stage financing gap where many NCS projects with potential for impact lack upfront capital needed for pre-feasibility, feasibility, or development activities of the projects.
River in the rainforest at Balok, Malaysia. (Photo by Eutah Mizushima on Unsplash)
By pooling funds from various funders and allocating them to the highest priority sites or projects, the Facility streamlines the fundraising process for individual NCS projects and concentrates efforts on ensuring the quality and sustainability of the projects. Through this, the Facility aims to reduce bottlenecks in the sourcing and development of NCS project pipelines, thereby accelerating the much-needed support for NCS to protect, restore and sustainably manage ecosystems.
Our support for the Technical Assistance Facility will help unlock the potential of NCS in the Asia-Pacific region, catalyse larger investment into high-quality NCS projects and generate benefits for climate, biodiversity and local communities.
Our support for the Technical Assistance Facility will help unlock the potential of NCS in the Asia-Pacific region, catalyse larger investment into high-quality NCS projects and generate benefits for climate, biodiversity and local communities.
Outcomes to-date:
As of August 2024, Conservation International’s NCS team has reviewed over 80 project opportunities in total and the Technical Assistance Facility is supporting the development of 14 NCS projects in seven countries across diverse ecosystems and communities. These projects have the potential to deliver the following impact:
The Facility has also successfully achieved two “recycling events” since inception, where grants provided to two projects have been recycled back into the Facility. These events are illustrative of important advancements in the development of the project portfolio, such that some specific projects have been able to attract commercial capital as a follow-on investment to the early-stage TAF grant. This reimbursable grant approach allows the TAF to continue supporting early-stage NCS projects, while also fostering a more robust financing market for high-quality projects across the region.
As of August 2024, Conservation International’s NCS team has reviewed over 80 project opportunities in total and the Technical Assistance Facility is supporting the development of 14 NCS projects in seven countries across diverse ecosystems and communities. These projects have the potential to deliver the following impact:
- 1.4 million hectares of forest protected and/or restored
- 102 million tons of CO2e sequestered or avoided over lifetime of projects
- 54,000 community members benefitted
The Facility has also successfully achieved two “recycling events” since inception, where grants provided to two projects have been recycled back into the Facility. These events are illustrative of important advancements in the development of the project portfolio, such that some specific projects have been able to attract commercial capital as a follow-on investment to the early-stage TAF grant. This reimbursable grant approach allows the TAF to continue supporting early-stage NCS projects, while also fostering a more robust financing market for high-quality projects across the region.
Find out more:
- Conservation International Asia-Pacific
- "Unlocking Nature's Potential: Accelerating Climate Solutions through Early-Stage Funding", 1 July 2024, Conservation International Asia-Pacific