Global Climate Initiative Receives $92M Boost for Adaptation and Mitigation Research

The NRF is collaborating with the Canada Research Coordinating Committee as part of a global consortium of funding bodies.

The National Research Foundation (NRF) has expressed its support for the newly announced $92 million funding boost dedicated to the International Joint Initiative for Research in Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation.

This significant investment was revealed by the Canada Research Coordinating Committee in Ottawa, Canada, on the 3rd of June, 2024. The committee is a key player in this international effort, which aims to finance research that spans multiple disciplines and sectors to address the critical challenges posed by climate change.

The NRF is collaborating with the Canada Research Coordinating Committee as part of a global consortium of funding bodies. This consortium includes partners from Brazil, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, the UK, and the USA.

The NRF is directly funding four South African research endeavors as part of its commitment to the initiative. Additionally, the New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) is financing two other local projects. The NFRF is known for backing pioneering research that is interdisciplinary, international, and has the potential for high impact and transformative results.

These local projects contribute to the broader scope of the initiative, which encompasses 32 international research projects. These projects involve a network of 424 researchers across 45 countries, all working on three-year plans aimed at developing strategies for adaptation and mitigation that will benefit the most vulnerable populations affected by climate change.

The collective contribution from all the research funders amounts to over $30 million in supplementary funding for these projects.

Dr. Fulufhelo Nelwamondo, CEO of the NRF, remarked that the financial injection into the International Joint Initiative is timely. He noted that the NRF-funded projects are beginning to make significant progress and that the additional funding will serve to elevate these projects to new levels of success.

In a related announcement, the Canada Research Coordinating Committee disclosed the recipients of the NFRF Exploration Competition grants. This annual competition endorses research that integrates different fields in innovative ways, fostering bold and creative approaches to scientific inquiry.

This year, the competition awarded $33 million to 133 research projects. These projects cover a diverse range of topics, from studying the outermost layers of Earth’s atmosphere and the cosmos from a high-arctic vantage point, to revolutionizing AI software into intelligent mechanical systems, and advancing the detection of breast cancer through liquid biopsies.

The International Joint Initiative mandates that all research projects address at least two of the eight key risks outlined in the sixth assessment report by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This report underscores the ongoing and unprecedented climatic changes observed globally, impacting every ecosystem and society, with the intensity of these changes expected to increase with further global warming.