Biodiversity talks end with call for ‚urgent‘ action

www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment

 

For more information visit: www.cbd.int/2011-2020 , www.cbd.int/agro/food-nutrition

People’s Coalition on Food Sovereignty: www.foodsov.org/take-action

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), known informally as the Biodiversity Convention, is an international legally binding treaty. The Convention has three main goals: 1. conservation of biological diversity (or biodiversity);2. sustainable use of its components; and 3. fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources. In other words, its objective is to develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. It is often seen as the key document regarding sustainable development. MORE

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are eight international development goals that all 192 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015. They include eradicating extreme poverty, reducing child mortality rates, fighting disease epidemics such as AIDS, and developing a global partnership for development.  MORE

As the United Nations and the Ministry of Environment of Japan prepare to globally launch the Decade of Biodiversity in Kanazawa, Japan, governments, businesses and ordinary citizens are being asked to do their bit to save our planet’s delicate ecosystem over the next 10 years.

With the COP17 summit in Durban concluding with hopes of a binding agreement on carbon emissions, there is hope that the Decade of Biodiversity can build on this achievement.

Biodiversity is of vital importance to us all as it underpins a wide range of ecosystem services on which we depend. It provides for food security, human health, clean air and water, it contributes to local livelihoods and economic development and is essential in the fight against poverty.

Yet despite its huge importance, the planet’s biodiversity is being lost at an unprecedented rate.

Throughout the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity (2011-202) governments are encouraged to develop, implement and communicate the results of national strategies for implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity.

However, the initiative will not be without its challenges as governments and business strapped for cash in the current recession deal with a multitude of issues at the same time. So what can realistically be achieved over the next 10 years to prevent the loss of biodiversity? What can governments, business and you, the individual do to help the cause?

The involvement of a wide range of stakeholders, including children and youth, will be key to the success of the Decade. Already the United Nations has recognized the vital importance of our children’s education to the future of the planet. The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity hosts and coordinates The Green Wave, a project to raise awareness and educate young people – tomorrow’s leaders and citizens – on biodiversity and on actions to preserve life on Earth. Each year, The Green Wave contributes to worldwide celebrations of the International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB).

The Organisation for Industrial, Spiritual and Cultural Advancement (OISCA) has been participating in The Green Wave all over the world since 2009. This year 2011, the International Year of Forests and the starting year of United Nations Decade on Biodiversity, over 14,000 children and adults at 105 OISCA sites in 13 countries have taken part in the campaign.

webTV – Tokyo: In a live and interactive web TV programme from Tokyo, two of the key figures driving the response to the planet’s loss of biodiversity will be answering your questions about the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity. http://www.cbd.int/2011-2020/media/webtv_jp.shtml

Yasuaki Nagaishi, Secretary General of OISCA (Organisation for Industrial, Spiritual and Cultural Advancement) will join with Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity at 20:30 (local time) on Tuesday December 20th to answer your questions.

 

http://www.350.org/ http://www.facebook.com/350.org

http://en.wikipedia.org/Kyoto Protocol

 

Previous #articles, #videos:

Japan – Nagoya Biodiversity Agreement

CBD – UN Convention on Biological Diversity

Eradicating Ecocide – Rights for the Planet

 

http://www.facebook.com/UNBiodiversity

http://www.facebook.com/United Nations Millennium Campaign

http://www.facebook.com/iucn.org

http://www.facebook.com/road2rio20

„So we expect assistance to be able to effectively conserve our environment for the common good of the world community.“

Developed nations agreed to establish mechanisms for raising finance to help them – which could amount to hundreds of billions of dollars per year by 2020.

They are required to have a plan to raise such sums in place by 2012, when Brazil will host the second Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.

 

Nature’s sting: The real cost of damaging Planet Earth

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business


Nature’s gift: The economic benefits of preserving the natural world

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business

 

The coming famine: risks and solutions for global food security

http://www.sciencealert.com.au/features/20101804-20862.html

 

Natural services

The reason the world is waking up to the real cost of the degradation of the Earth’s wildlife and resources – commonly referred to as biodiversity loss – is because, until now, no one has had to pay for it.

 

“Quote: It’s pretty terrifying. Nobody in business thinks that at some point this is not going to hurt us”

– Gavin Neath, Unilever“ http://www.sourcewatch.org/Unilever

 

Businesses and individuals have largely operated on the basis that the natural resources and services that the planet provides are infinite.

But of course they are not. And only when the value of protecting them, and in some cases replacing them, is calculated, does their vital role in the global economy become clear.

Some are obvious, for example the clean and accessible water that is needed to grow crops to eat, and the fish that provide one-sixth of the protein consumed by the human population.

But others are less so, for example the mangrove swamps and coral reefs that provide natural barriers against storms that devastate coastal regions; the vast array of plant species that provide pharmaceutical companies with endless genetic resources used for live-saving drugs; and the insects that provide essential pollination for growing around 70% of the world’s most productive crops.

 

http://www.srfood.org/

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Food/Pages/FoodIndex.aspx Eco farming can feed the world

 

http://farmlandgrab.org

http://www.facebook.com/UNRioplus20

http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2004/42621/index.html