Discussing a new strategy for global biodiversity governance
Xinhua News Agency, Kunming, October 13th. How important is biodiversity conservation? Faced with the accelerating rate of global species extinction, biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation pose major risks to human survival and development. How should all parties work together to promote the steady and long-term global ecological and environmental governance?
At the high-level meeting of the 2020 United Nations Biodiversity Conference (Phase I) held from the 12th to the 13th, representatives of United Nations officials, heads of international organizations, ministers of various countries and other representatives gathered in Kunming across the screen to discuss a new strategy for global biodiversity governance.
"The future of mankind and the future of species are in our hands"
"The loss of biodiversity cannot be reversed. The future of mankind and the future of species are in our hands." Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, said.
She called on all parties to take "clear and concrete actions" to promote the achievement of the "Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework". "This conference is historic, and what we are going to do will be remembered by history." Anderson said that in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, all parties must further enhance political will, formulate relevant policies, strengthen transparency and accountability, effectively address the key issues that lead to biodiversity loss, and have enough courage to overcome numerous obstacles. Action is a high-frequency word in the speeches of the delegates. "To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and avoid the loss of biodiversity, goals alone are far from enough. The international community must formulate transparent policies and take practical actions to directly address the root causes of biodiversity loss and reverse the phenomenon of biodiversity loss." Elizabeth Mrema, Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, said. Huang Runqiu, President of COP15 and Minister of Ecology and Environment of China, said that to achieve the global biodiversity goals after 2020, it is most important to take practical actions, which is also the consensus of the delegates. "It is necessary to give priority to biodiversity conservation in policy formulation and implementation, and take effective measures to achieve changes in food systems, infrastructure investment, energy, land use and other aspects."
In the view of Susanna Jacob, Deputy Director-General of the World Health Organization, a good ecological environment is closely linked to people's health. "We hope to establish a comprehensive cooperation mechanism and a cross-sector and cross-departmental working method, design an operational framework, mainstream biodiversity conservation, and jointly move towards a healthy and sustainable ecological civilization."
"We will do our utmost to support countries in protecting biodiversity"
Achim Steiner, Administrator of the United Nations Development Program, said that the United Nations Development Program is helping countries promote "nature-friendly" investments. At present, they have launched $3.2 billion investment projects in 138 countries with major partners such as the Global Environment Fund and the Green Climate Fund to carry out ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation.
"The Global Environment Facility is the financial mechanism of the Convention on Biological Diversity. As the CEO of the Global Environment Facility, I will do my utmost to support countries in protecting biodiversity." The commitment of Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, CEO of the Global Environment Facility, won applause from the audience.
At the meeting, David Malpass, President of the World Bank, focused on sharing how to provide financial support for the protection of biodiversity in developing countries and low-income countries. "For example, the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group recently pledged to provide the first "blue loan" of US$300 million in Indonesia to recycle 50 billion plastic bottles annually by 2025 to help solve the problem of plastic pollution."
"I hope COP15 can awaken more people's consensus"
"Human development of land will emit greenhouse gases, and 75% of the pollution in the ocean comes from land-based activities. Therefore, land, ocean and climate change are inextricably linked, and have a more profound impact on biodiversity protection." Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, called on governments to introduce comprehensive governance measures on land, ocean, climate change and biodiversity protection as soon as possible.
Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, said that more and more countries are responding to climate change and biodiversity loss through comprehensive actions. Statistics from 2016 show that 60% of countries in the world regard the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems as a priority in their efforts to address climate change. By 2021, this figure has risen to 75%.
"The ocean is facing the loss of biodiversity, and most of the work to protect the ocean is inseparable from the effective response to climate change by all parties." Peter Thomson, the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Ocean, called on all parties to practice multilateralism and cooperate deeply under the framework of the United Nations to address issues such as climate change and biodiversity loss.
"We expect COP15 to awaken more people's consensus, from the global to the national, from the environmental department to other government departments, from enterprises or non-governmental organizations to the media, and even the entire society to participate widely, promote global coordinated actions, make biodiversity protection a driving force for promoting the green recovery of the world economy, and play our role in achieving the 2050 vision of harmonious coexistence between man and nature." Huang Runqiu said. (Reporters Pan Jie, Cheng Xin, Wu Yue, Yao Bing) (End)