GCBC Launches Theme for Fourth Research Call, Tackling the Drivers of Biodiversity Loss in Three Critical Regions
The Global Centre on Biodiversity for Climate (GCBC) has announced the theme for its fourth Research Grant Competition (RGC4):
Enabling transformative change: addressing drivers of biodiversity loss in three critical regions
The theme calls for research proposals that address the underlying drivers of biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation in the Amazon, the Congo Basin and the Coral Triangle.
The call builds on two major assessments: The Transformative Change Assessment from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), and the UK Government’s Nature security assessment on global biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and national security. The UK assessment identified six regions of strategic ecological importance worldwide – three of which fall within GCBC’s areas of operation and now form the geographic focus of RGC4.
RGC4 seeks to target the structural and systemic forces, commodity markets, financing, governance and political economy, that drive ecosystem loss across these regions but have proven resistant to policy intervention. GCBC is particularly keen to fund work on ecosystems currently underrepresented in its portfolio, including coral reefs, open ecosystems, mixed-use landscapes, wetlands and peatlands.
The call is structured around three research priorities:
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- Socio-ecological dynamics and transformative pathways: how human behaviour, resource use and ecological change interact through feedback loops, and where the leverage points for transformative change can occur.
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- Commodity markets and financial flows: the conditions under which supply-chain interventions, regulation and subsidy reform can shift production and investment away from ecosystem degradation.
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- Governance and institutions: which governance arrangements, national, regional and transboundary, deliver lasting biodiversity and livelihood outcomes, including in fragile and conflict-affected settings.
Each priority maps to strategies set out in the IPBES Transformative Change Assessment, and GCBC expects funded projects to show a clear pathway from research to evidence that can inform governance, policy or investment decisions affecting biodiversity, climate and poverty outcomes in the focal regions.
This call takes GCBC into an exciting new phase. It explores the ways in which governments, development organisations and communities can act more systemically; tackling the underlying drivers of biodiversity loss and creating the conditions in which societies harness ecosystems to tackle poverty, protect nature and adapt to climate change.
Dan McGonigle, Head of International Biodiversity and Climate Research, Defra
Biodiversity research often falls short of influencing commodity markets, finance systems and policy — the places where real change is needed. RGC4 asks researchers to go there directly. I'm looking forward to seeing what a sharper focus draws from research institutions around the world, and to identifying a cluster of high quality, solution-orientated projects that can genuinely help move the needle in the three focal regions.
Dr Jamie Gordon, Biodiversity Lead, GCBC
Want more information?
The RGC4 Theme Paper sets out the rationale and background for the theme. It presents the focal geographies and research priorities for RGC4, including indicative research questions and eligibility criteria.
Register for the RGC4 Theme Launch webinar, scheduled for Tuesday 8 September 2026, 12:00-12:45 (BST)
The competition opens for Concept Notes in October 2026.
