Forest Economies & Indigenous Leadership

Solutions Insights Lab partnered with the Skoll Foundation to create "What’s Working," a searchable portal that combines solutions journalism and curated interviews across sectors, regions and key topics to uncover insights from global efforts to solve social problems. We’ve interviewed more than 300 social entrepreneurs to examine what’s working, and what’s not. With this incredible wealth of knowledge and experience, we’ve distilled clear, usable insights for journalists, philanthropists, policymakers and change agents looking to understand how to scale social innovations.

“Insights About Climate Action” builds on this work, spotlighting how Indigenous leaders and communities are advancing some of the most impactful climate solutions, even as their work remains largely underfunded and overlooked.

The Lab mapped the interconnected pathways through which Indigenous leadership, regional climate strategies, land governance, and media influence shape effective and just environmental action. We distilled seven insights for policymakers, funders, and practitioners.

Across sectors, we found nine high-level insights into how social change happens at scale. These insights include the vital role of public-private partnerships and the importance of flexible funding. These insights, pulled from hundreds of interviews with social entrepreneurs working around the world, highlight the common pillars of system change.

Nov. 10-21, 2025 – COP30 in Belém, Brazil

Oct. 17, 2025 – Guardians of the Forest: Reporting on Indigenous Leadership in Climate Action Webinar

Sept. 25, 2025 – Humans + AI: Accelerating Solutions for the SDGs with the Brookings Institute at SDG Media Zone in New York, New York

Aug. 4, 2025 – Human-AI Teaming for People and Planet with the Brookings Institute at the ACM Collective Intelligence Conference in San Diego, California

Apr. 3, 2025 – Advancing Climate Action through Solutions Storytelling at the Skoll World Forum in Oxford, United Kingdom

Oct. 24, 2024 – Flash Talk at #DevEx World 2024 with Search for Common Ground CEO, Shamil Idriss, in Washington, D.C.

Oct. 15-16, 2024 – SchmoozeFest in Tarrytown, New York

Sept. 18, 2024 – Lunch and Learn with the Skoll Foundation

Aug. 2, 2024 – “Storytelling for Impact” Webinar with TechSoup

May 6-10, 2024 – Catalysing Change Week 2024

May 8, 2024 – Opportunity Collaboration

Apr. 9-12, 2024 – Skoll World Forum and Marmalade in Oxford, United Kingdom

Mar. 21-24, 2024 – Pacific Sociological Association Conference in San Diego, California

Oct. 23-25, 2024 – SOCAP in San Francisco, California

Nov. 29, 2023 – Catalyst 2030, 43rd General Assembly

Apr. 12-14, 2023 – Skoll World Forum in Oxford, United Kingdom