Giving to Amplify Earth Action

The IKEA Foundation has joined a new initiative, Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA), by the World Economic Forum. The initiative will leverage philanthropic capital to generate the $3 trillion needed each year from public and private sources to tackle climate change and nature loss.

On January 17, 2023, The World Economic Forum, supported by more than 45 partners launched the Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA), a global initiative to fund and grow new and existing public, private and philanthropic partnerships (PPPPs) to unlock the $3 trillion of financing needed each year to reach net zero, reverse nature loss, and restore biodiversity by 2050. The launch was done at Davos, Switzerland.

With the energy and cost of living crises, the ambition of steering the planet towards a 1.5-degree Celsius warming pathway hangs in the balance. Meanwhile, the recent agreement at UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP15) in Montreal to conserve 30 per cent of all earth and sea looks bold but fragile in the face of a rising biodiversity crisis. Current funding is slow and inadequate, and a new approach is needed to get capital flowing. Philanthropic giving can address this, with unique qualities not found in other financing: it is nimble, more tolerant of risks and is driven by values and long-term outcomes rather than quarterly returns.