7. Operationalizing social inclusion

The GEF has increasingly placed inclusion at the center of its programming, recognizing that environmental results are more effective and sustainable when all voices—especially those of women, Indigenous Peoples, youth, persons with disabilities, and other historically marginalized groups—are meaningfully engaged. Inclusion is not only a matter of equity, but also a catalyst for transformational change, as it enhances local ownership, brings diverse knowledge systems into decision-making, and strengthens the sustainability of environmental interventions.

As part of this approach, the GEF Secretariat has, in recent years, prioritized strengthening its engagement with groups that have historically faced marginalization or vulnerability, among them women, Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IPLCs), youth, and persons with disabilities. This commitment is advanced through multiple channels, including GEF policies and safeguards on gender equality and stakeholder engagement, which set minimum standards across the portfolio. Inclusion is also operationalized through delivery mechanisms such as the Small Grants Programme (SGP) and community-based approaches (CBAs), which directly support civil society and locally led action. The SGP enables grassroots participation through tailored grantmaking, while CBAs work to integrate local knowledge and priorities into larger-scale GEF initiatives. Together, these instruments reflect the evolving orientation of the GEF toward more inclusive, equitable, and locally responsive environmental programming.

This chapter examines how the GEF is advancing inclusion through its policies, safeguards, and delivery mechanisms. It draws on a portfolio analysis of 300 GEF projects—representing $1.2 billion in GEF funding and $6.7 billion in cofinancing—to assess the inclusion of marginalized groups, with particular attention to fragile and conflict-affected situations, where these groups face heightened vulnerability and disproportionate impacts from environmental and socioeconomic shocks.¹ It also incorporates findings from evaluations of CBAs and the SGP (GEF IEO 2024a, forthcoming-c), which are important delivery mechanisms for reaching and empowering marginalized populations at the local level.

The GEF has a series of measures to ensure inclusion in GEF-funded projects: GEF policies on environmental and social safeguards, gender equality, and stakeholder engagement; review and feedback from the GEF Secretariat during the design stage on issues related to inclusion; and a self-tagging system for projects to identify their early consideration of marginalized groups.