Final Newsletter 2025
Greetings from ACRP!
Can you believe this is the last newsletter of 2025?
What a busy year and quarter it’s been!
We kicked off the quarter with Conversations with Climate Leaders, where we discussed what meaningful youth participation in policy spaces looks like. We were joined by Climate Leaders Tinaye Mabara and Evelyn Adzovi, who unpacked how young people are often treated with tokenism, invited for visibility rather than real influence, and how this is worsened by a lack of funding and the capacity needed to engage effectively in complex negotiation spaces.
The discussion emphasised that youth delegates must be supported not just to attend COPs, but to ultimately become negotiators who can shape decisions from the inside. Meaningful participation also requires mental and physical preparation, because the pace, pressure, and intensity of COP can be overwhelming.
Reflections on the G20 Summits and the Power of People’s Spaces
The G20, or the Group of Twenty is the primary international forum for the largest and most developed economies. It is a forum for international cooperation, where global economics and progress is negotiated and discussed.
Simply put, it is the world’s global economic gathering, featuring countries that collectively represent approximately 85% of the world’s GDP, over 75% of international trade, and two-thirds of the world’s population. Although the decisions made at the G20 are not legally binding, they hold a lot of political influence, impacting national policies and the work of international organisations globally. In 2025 South Africa served as the first African president of the G20 under the theme “Solidarity, Equality, and Sustainability”. In addition to the G20 Leaders Summit which took place on 22-23 November, there were several adjacent events taking place in an attempt to include various sectors.
The African Climate Reality Project Calls for Climate Justice, Just Transition, and Fair Finance at COP30
As the world gathers in Brazil for COP30, the African Climate Reality Project is calling for ambitious climate action rooted in justice, equity, and accountability.
This year’s conference, hosted under the theme of “implementation”, comes at a decisive moment. The world has just lived through the hottest decade on record, with 2024 marking the first calendar year to exceed 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Southern Africa is heating at double the global rate, with communities already experiencing devastating floods, droughts, and food insecurity.
Procedural justice foundation of South Africa’s just energy transition
South Africa’s Just Energy Transition stands at a historic turning point as recent hard-won legal victories have redefined who gets to shape our energy future.
In April 2024, the Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed the government’s appeal in the landmark #DeadlyAir case, affirming that toxic air pollution in the Highveld violates constitutional rights to a healthy environment and that the state has a non-negotiable duty to act. Months later, in December 2024, the Constitutional Court struck down plans for 1,500 megawatts of new coal capacity in the #CancelCoal judgment, declaring such projects unconstitutional and affirming that the rights of children and future generations must guide energy policy. Then, in July 2025, the International Court of Justice issued an advisory opinion confirming that governments globally, including ours, are legally bound to act on climate change. Also this year, the Climate Change Act 22 of 2024, was proclaimed into law, further creating new pathways for court victories, and providing a solid legal backing for climate action.
South Africa's NDC Analysis 2025
Dear New President of the AfDB: It’s Time to Finance Our Future, Not Fossil Fuels
As we celebrate Africa Day, the African Climate Reality Project is launching a campaign calling on the incoming president of the African Development Bank (AfDB) to lead with justice, equity, and vision. Our message is simple: it’s time to finance the future, not fossil fuels.
Leadership Training | 29 March 2025, Cape Town, South Africa
Leading the Change: African Voices for Climate Action
Through this book we delve into the stories of African Climate Reality Leaders (CRLs), their resilience, innovation, and unwavering commitment to climate action. We celebrate their achievements based on their lived experiences. By weaving together the rich cultural heritage of storytelling with the pressing climate change issues, this book aims to showcase Africa’s role in the global fight.
In light of the proclamation of the Climate Change Act, we call on you, Minister, to take the next critical step in addressing the climate crisis by prioritising ambitious climate action at the highest level. We urge you to drive climate action through actionable plans that address the ongoing climate emergency, which threatens the health, livelihoods, and well-being of all living in South Africa, especially those with the least adaptive capacity. These efforts must align with South Africa’s commitments under the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), ensuring the transition to a low-carbon economy is ambitious, inclusive, and just.
QUARTER THREE NEWSLETTER
The Africa We Want – Quarter Three Newsletter
Greetings from ACRP!
As the year draws to a close, we are happy to be wrapping up with a bang!
ACRP attended COP 29 this year in Baku, Azerbaijan, between 16-22 November. This year’s COP was dubbed the Finance COP, as it was focused on the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) to determine a new climate finance target.
On 16th November 2024, ACRP presented a finance accountability tool thatenables the public to track the flow of climate finance going in and out of their respective countries. The tool also helps to validate the projects that climate finance is set aside for. This event was co-hosted by The Climate Reality Project Philippines, highlighting the importance of community-led efforts for tracking and validating climate finance in the Philippines, Ghana, and South Africa. The ACRP team’s presentation focused on an analysis of climate finance flows between 2010 and 2022, examining funding sources, types of funding, and the sectors receiving funding in Ghana and South Africa. They concluded with a site validation report on the Worobong South Forest Reserve in Ghana.
Read The Full Newsletter HERE
Latest Resources
Towards an ambitious and sustainable climate future for Ghana: African Climate Reality Leaders’ position statement on Ghana’s Nationally Determined Contributions
Enhancing South Africa’s Nationally Determined Contributions:A Call for Increased Ambition, Financial Transparency, and Gender Responsiveness
The COP 101 resource is designed to help you understand the significance of the Conference of the Parties, its impact, and the importance of African voices in climate negotiations.
COP 29
Interview on COP 29 with Courtney Morgan
ACRP’s senior campaigner, Courtney Morgan, discusses climate action, expectations for COP29, and the importance of youth voices in climate negotiations on Science Wise with VOW FM.
Calls for climate justice and fair financing at COP29
As the world gathers for COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, the African Climate Reality Project (ACRP) has set forth its clear vision for climate justice, equity and the protection of vulnerable communities, especially those in the Global South.
AFRICA NEEDS CLIMATE ACTION NOW!
Get the tools, training, and network to fight climate change and together build the Africa we want.
OUR KEY OBJECTIVES
Capacitated Communities
Support and mobilise over 2000 Climate Reality Leaders across Africa.
International Cooperation
Amplify African voices and demands in climate policy spaces and on the international stage.
CLIMATE EDUCATION NOW
Improve climate literacy and spark climate conversations at all levels.
CONTINUING THE CONVERSATION
Promote the climate justice conversation through a lens that prioritizes an inclusive and fair shift towards sustainability, with a focus on African perspectives.
African Led Solutions
Support and coordinate African-centred climate solutions.
Public Finance
Place pressure on Public Finance Institutions to make investments that are socially and environmentally responsible.
Our Community in Action
Throwback to a climate workshop and tree planting we hosted with The Green Belt Movement.
In honour of Wangari Maathai Day, we’re celebrating community, climate leadership, and the power of small actions that create lasting change.
#WangariLegacyChallenge #WangariMaathaiDay 💚
As we mark Wangari Maathai Day, today’s People Daily features an opinion piece by our Advocacy Manager Job Mwangi, on why Karura Forest is testing Kenya’s promise to protect public forests. Join the conversation. #HandsOffKarura
We’re wrapping up the month of #LoveOurPlanet by hearing from our inspiring Climate Leaders.
Risper Asembo is a Climate Leader, mentor, micro-grant alumna, and recipient of the Alfredo Sirkis Memorial Green Ring Award presented by former US Vice President Al Gore. Risper shows
LATEST NEWS & FEATURES
From Paper to Action: A Call For Ambitious Climate Action
In light of the proclamation of the Climate Change Act, we call on you, Minister, to take the next critical step in addressing the climate crisis by prioritising ambitious climate action at the highest level. We urge you to drive climate action through actionable plans that address the ongoing climate emergency, which threatens the health, livelihoods, and well-being of all living in South Africa, especially those with the least adaptive capacity. These efforts must align with South Africa’s commitments under the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), ensuring the transition to a low-carbon economy is ambitious, inclusive, and just.
ACRP calls for COP29 to deliver increased climate finance and equitable solutions for Africa’s climate future
The African Climate Reality Project (ACRP) is urging global leaders attending COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, to focus on the urgent needs of Africa, and calling for a drastic reduction in emissions alongside a significant increase in climate finance to support more ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in Africa.
The African Climate Reality Project has launched a Framework and Tracker for Nationally Determined Contributions to help you monitor your country's NDCs.
"Our mission is to catalyze a global solution to the climate crisis by making urgent action a necessity across every sector of society."
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"The reality we now face implores us to act." - AL GORE
People like you are using their voices and everyday choices to solve the climate crisis. Join the movement.