COP16 FAQs

Innovation Stage

How strict is the 15-minute time limit and what happens if I exceed it?

It will be extremely strict. If you exceed your time, you will be cut-off. Plan your time and practice.

Can I get a list of previously asked questions from past events to better prepare for the Q&A?

This is the first time we are running an Innovation Stage, so we have no precedent to go by. The Moderator, who is an experienced journalist, will send you the opening question to prepare. Keep the response to each question to about 90 seconds. You don’t have to share everything critical information on the stage. Instead, invite the inquirer into a bilateral meeting after the event for further discussion.

Are there specific topics or themes you expect us to cover or avoid during our presentation?

Remember your audience and what you want from them: to buy into your product for a partnership or for them to link up with investors who can partner with you.

Technical and Logistical Support

We have a technical team who will assist you with projecting your presentation, timekeeping. Moderating the event. But please be sure to invite the partners you want to come to your event. We will share the electronic flyers on 15 November to give you time to share them.

What kind of audio/visual equipment will be available, and how can I ensure compatibility with my presentation format?

The floor has a raised stage with a wall screen of between 65-95 inches. Prepare a presentation with landscape orientation. High resolution graphics: Images, PowerPoint or in PDF. If you have a video, embed it from YouTube, Vevo or such other platform for sound. Presentations sent by the deadline can expect support, including appropriate formatting.

Will there be technical support on-site during the event to assist with setting up and troubleshooting?

We will have a technician from the G20 GLI and a videographer on site as well as a hired technician from the service provider to support the livestreaming and on-screen projections.

Is there a rehearsal or a technical run-through before the event?

A meeting with the moderator the day before the event is required. You will receive your question then. While a rehearsal of the presentation is not envisioned, given that the stage will be in use for other purposes throughout the day, the technicians will test each presentations in advance. Veronica will alert participants whose presentations are problematic.

Audience and Engagement

UNCCD will invite governments, scientists, civil society organizations, and representatives of international organizations to the session. Attendance will be dictated by their occupation. However, lunchtimes are from 1-3pm. Therefore all sessions will likely have this combination of participants. High-level participants, such as Ministers, The Saudi Prince, various heads of UN agencies and other international organizations as well as Chief Executive Officers of companies speaking at COP may also make impromptu stop-bys. Also be aware all presentations will be webcast. Therefore, consider the general global public and your competitors as part of the audience.

Who exactly is the audience, and what level of technical detail should I aim for in my presentation?

See Q8 above.

How is the event being promoted, and how can I contribute to these efforts?

A wide range of efforts are in place. There will be a dedicated website of the Pavilion, which will be released to the public on 15 November. Email publicity has already begun through our monthly newsletter and shoutouts to over 30,000 people around the world. Information will be shared with the G20’s mailing list of over 200 top-tier journalists and global media and with journalists attending COP16. The Pavilion is co-hosted with UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, who will support the G20 GLI in hosting the Pavilion. Will also share A4 flyers of each event for you to share with your contacts. Invite them to register and watch you present, and also invite them to invite others. Announce your participation at the Restoration Pavilion on IG, IN, FB, X, YT and tag @G20landinitiative for amplification. Use the Restoration Pavilion Brand to prepare cards of before, during and after the event. The more visibility we give as a group, the more interesting it will look.

Will there be opportunities for further interaction with the audience after my presentation?

Yes. The Pavilion has open meeting spots where you can engage. Reach out to the different organizational representatives and invite them directly to come and meet.

Networking and Opportunities

At the registration desk, submit your information and authorize it’s inclusion in the Participants’ List that will be shared with delegates so that you can be found by anyone wishing to meeting. Bring business cards with QR codes that people can scan and link with you immediately.

Are there specific attendees, such as potential investors or partners, that you think I should connect with during the event?

This COP will be the largest ever so you are well positioned to find potential partners. Also, consider this an opportunity to meet representatives from countries where you would like to market your product and need contacts who can introduce you. Select different partners from those countries to get insights from different angles.

What networking opportunities will be available, and how can I best prepare to take advantage of them?

Find the participants online, inform them when you are at COP, what you will be doing and pitch them to come to your event, citing the specific benefits you expect they will have. Do your research to pitch them accurately.

Feedback and Follow-Up

We will have an online form where participants can send questions. At the end of your presentation a QR code will lin to the form that watchers can scan and send instantaneous feedback.

How will feedback be collected and shared with us?

After COP, G20 GLI will review all the Innovation Stage events and prepare a report, which will be included in the G20 GLI Annual Report to be published by 28 February 2025. It may not be feasible to provide an indepth report with the analysis of the events.

Are there any follow-up opportunities post-event, such as additional speaking opportunities, workshops, or collaborative projects?

Participants are encouraged to subscribe to the G20 GLI newsletter to stay up-to-date about new opportunities for collaboration. G20 GLI believes in partnerships and prioritizes information sharing and support with its subscribers and partners.

Administrative and Miscellaneous

If you encounter challenges to get access to the COP, contact Veronica Vasilica.

Make use of resources that you have stored virtually as customs clearances in Saudi Arabia can take time.

Select your accommodation in the hotels listed on the UNCCD website, to avail yourself of the free public transport the government will offer. Only these hotels will have free shuttle busses to and from the conference rooms throughout the day.

What are the security arrangements at the venue, especially concerning proprietary technology or sensitive information?

Only share information that will not pose a risk to you. Be wise with proprietary information if it is not patented.

Are travel and accommodation costs covered for participants, or is there a stipend available?

All participants are self-sponsored, unless communicated bilaterally otherwise for those who are working in partnership with specific G20 GLI or UNDER projects.

Restoration Pavilion

COP16

About the Restoration Pavilion

UNCCD COP16

Host country COP16

G20 GLI

About G20

Implementation Strategy

Director's Message

The year 2024 was pivotal for the Global Land Initiative. Land degradation and restoration remained prominent on the global policy agenda throughout.

The UN Environmental Assembly, G7 Leaders’ Summit, G20 Environment and Climate Change Ministers’ meeting, and BRICS Leaders’ Summit addressed land degradation and committed to scaling up land restoration efforts.

The European Union passed a new Restoration Law mandating quantitative targets for land restoration. The UNFCCC, UNCBD and UNCCD Conferences of the Parties (COPs), held during the last quarter of the year, reinforced land restoration as a crucial solution to combat land degradation, biodiversity loss and climate change.

Building on this favorable policy momentum, the Global Land Initiative continued to develop and deliver a robust program. In collaboration with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), we completed a database on Global Restoration Commitments by countries under the UNCCD, UNCBD, UNFCCC and the Bonn Challenge.

Representing a significant increase in global commitments since 2021, the total global commitment now stands at 1.2 billion hectares, with 30 countries, including 11 G20 members, pledging to restore over 10 million hectares each.

The UNCCD, with financial support from the Global Land Initiative, published the first global restoration economy international report, titled, Investing in Land’s Future: Financial needs assessment for UNCCD. The report defines the private sector’s growing role in land restoration and its potential for creating green jobs.

The study outlines key recommendations to support the growth of the restoration economy, which has an associated market survey valued at $37 billion globally, growing at 8.2% annually and is projected to reach $70 billion by 2031. Together, these studies stressed the need for focused policy action to encourage private sector investment and engagement in the restoration economy.

Working with the International Trade Centre (ITC), the Global Land Initiative launched the first cohort of the “Global Ecopreneurs Program,” training 100 young entrepreneurs from restoration startups. These entrepreneurs received training on improving business plans and pitching to investors. We plan to scale this program regionally to reach 10,000 ecopreneurs by 2029.

Training remained a cornerstone of the Global Land Initiative, with programs on the restoration of mining areas, of urban lands, of lowland-based systems, of drylands and with biosaline agriculture. These trainings consistently attracted more applications than available slots. To accommodate this high demand and broader participation, we also conducted online webinars on these topics, in English, Arabic and French.

The first University Curriculum Course on Sustainable Agriculture for Land Restoration was launched this year. It reached over 400 university teachers, with over 100 trained on implementing the curriculum. A university module on urban land restoration is in its final stages.

Representatives from 25 countries attended the second Global Changemaker Academy for Parliamentarians held in Bonn. With the European Union Restoration Law’s passage, global best practices can now be discussed and adapted to national contexts.

The Global Land Initiative’s visibility surged with participation in the G20 Environment and Climate Change Working Group meetings in Brazil, the COPs of the UNCBD and UNCCD and 7 other international exhibitions. In December, the Initiative, in partnership with Germany’s Federal Museum of Arts and Sciences, opened the Save Land: United for Land Museum Exhibition, the first museum exhibition on land restoration, which will run until June 2025.

Online engagement grew, reaching over 35,000 newsletter subscribers and over 14,000 followers across social media platforms, and a global reach of nearly 400,000. The Global Photography Festival, which attracted 17,000 entries from 154 countries, further boosted visibility.

The Global Restoration Information Hub was launched in July 2024. It is a compilation of globally available data on land restoration from credible sources. The site provides information on global best practices, restoration commitments, best practice legislations, documentaries, restoration actors and other databases.

The Initiative issued a global call for communities and NGOs to submit their restoration projects for small grant support, receiving over 600 submissions from 100 countries. Forty-one projects from XX countries were selected for funding.

[Statement on faith, if the faith report is finalized]

The G20 Global Land Initiative Steering Committee was kept informed of developments through regular communication. It met in July and continues to provide guidance on program implementation. It received the work plan for 2025-26; an exciting period of action is ahead.