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Search At the OECD Green Growth & Sustainable Development (GGSD) Forum in Paris on 3 July 2025, Maria Isabel Cubides, Senior Manager of the Consumer Goods Forum’s (CGF) Human Rights Coalition (HRC), joined the session “Forests, agriculture and other land uses as a cornerstone of climate action.”
The discussion gathered leaders from government, academia, business and Indigenous organisations – including Luc Faraldi (National Agency for Territorial Cohesion, France), Aris Jansons (Ministry of Agriculture, Latvia), Dawn Madahbee Leach (National Indigenous Economic Development Board, Canada), Prof. David Freshwater (University of Kentucky, USA), Felipe Torres (CMPC, Chile) and Musdhalifah Machmud (Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs and Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries, Indonesia) – to examine the multifaceted roles of forests in driving rural economic development and societal well-being, and their interlinkage with climate action. It discussed the role of business and governments in adopting holistic approaches to protect forests, integrate indigenous knowledge, and accelerate climate action.
Representing CGF’s 400+ retailers and manufacturers – that collectively employ over 10 million people and impact more than 90 million across global supply chains – Maria Isabel shared reflections grounded in the work of the forum’s coalitions for people and planet. With this scale, the CGF offers a unique platform to drive transformation at speed and at scale, particularly at the intersection of business, human rights, and climate. Key insights included:
- The need for integrated approaches
Forests, climate, and people must be addressed together. Climate or deforestation goals in isolation can lead to unintended consequences – such as reinforcing land-use conflicts or undermining community rights – particularly in politically and economically pressured contexts.
“We need to break down silos so that human rights, social benefits, climate, and forests stop being treated as competing priorities – and start working together toward the shared goal of sustainable business that protects both people and the planet.” – Maria Isabel Cubides, Senior Manager – Human Rights, The Consumer Goods Forum
- Embedding human rights due diligence (HRDD) into climate and forest strategies
Incorporating HRDD into corporate climate and deforestation programmes enables companies to better identify and manage risks to people and ecosystems. She pointed to emerging practices that help protect Indigenous Peoples and local communities, including examples from palm oil supply chains in Southeast Asia, where companies engaging with suppliers and governments achieve more sustainable outcomes than those that disengage from complex regions.
“Embed human rights and environmental due diligence into every part of your strategy -your climate policy, your forest policy – because understanding the human dimension is essential to solving the problem as a whole.” – Maria Isabel Cubides
- The importance of business–government collaboration
Private sector efforts alone aren’t enough to deliver the scale of transformation needed. Supportive policy environments – and active alignment between companies and governments – are essential for driving systemic, lasting change.
“Governments should see due diligence not as a burden, but as an opportunity to build resilience, growth, and market access – and collaboration is the key to making that transformation happen at scale.” – Maria Isabel Cubides
The session’s 500+ in-person and virtual participants echoed the call for integrated, multi-stakeholder solutions – insights that will feed into the OECD’s Net Zero+ initiative on climate-economy resilience.
Maria Isabel’s expert participation highlighted the value of collaborative action grounded in responsible business practices and human rights safeguards – principles at the heart of CGF’s people and planet based coalitions. As the global regulatory landscape evolves, CGF continues to offer a platform for collective business leadership that delivers both environmental and social impact.
Learn more about the Human Rights Coalition and CGF’s work for people and planet at www.tcgfsocial.com
