local action for biodiversity (iclei world congress 2009)
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INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
Local Action for BiodiversityCementing the IUCN and ICLEI partnership
George Greene, Councillor IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
Biodiversity =
Species,
Genes and
Ecosystems
Life on Earth
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
Level of Biodiversity in the World in 2000Using Mean Species Abundance (MSA) indicator
Remaining MSA in %
Source: Ben ten Brink (MNP) presentation at the Workshop: The Economics of the Global Loss of Biological Diversity 5-6 March 2008, Brussels, Belgium.
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
Source: Ben ten Brink (MNP) presentation at the Workshop: The Economics of the Global Loss of Biological Diversity 5-6 March 2008, Brussels, Belgium.
Level of Biodiversity in the World in 2050One Scenario of the future : OECD/Globio
Remaining MSA in %
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
The 2010 Biodiversity Target
“to achieve, by 2010, a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss at the global, regional and national levels as a contribution to poverty alleviation and to the benefit of all life on earth”
Decision VI/26 CBD Strategic Plan 2002
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
A RAPIDLY URBANISING WORLD
• 1950: 30% people living in cities
• 2007: 50% people living in cities
• Separation of people from nature
• Cities cover 3% of global surface,…
• …but consume 95% of global resources
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
WHY DOES LOCAL ACTION MATTER FOR BIODIVERSITY?
• Local governments manage large areas of land and biodiversity resources. They plan, make decisions, develop and control infrastructure and housing. These actions can threaten biodiversity or can contribute to its conservation through better informed decisions, better policies and better management practices.
• Local areas are very dependent on natural resources and biodiversity outside their boundaries, including in adjacent rural areas and around the globe. Through several tools, local governments can mitigate their impact and reduce their dependency on natural resources (e.g public procurement).
• Voters and political institutions at the local level have the potential to be a great voice and force for biodiversity conservation, if we can increase understanding of the key issues and change behaviours.
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
BUT…
• While we are now starting to see some excellent cases of effective action at the local level
• Many local governments are only starting with local biodiversity action plans, and it is still a new field
• This is why a cooperation between ICLEI and IUCN in this area can build on our strengths to move forward on local action for biodiversity
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
CEMENTING ICLEI-IUCN PARTNERSHIP
• Where do we come from?
• Where are we going?
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
MISSION
To influence, encourage and assist societies
throughout the world to conserve the integrity and
diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural
resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
PROGRAMME
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
AT A GLANCE
• A unique democratic union of more than 1,000 member organizations
• National states, government agencies and NGOs from over 160 countries
• 10,000 scientists in six commissions of expertise• 1,000 staff in 62 offices worldwide• A neutral forum for governments, NGOs, scientists,
business and local communities to find pragmatic solutions
• UN Observer Status
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
IUCN LOCAL INITIATIVES
• IUCN Cities and Protected Areas Task Force (The Urban Imperative)
• Countdown 2010: since 2005 more than 350 local governments partners.
• Countdown 2010 has been working closely with ICLEI on Local Action for Biodiversity (LAB)
• Global Partnership on Cities and Biodiversity launched in Oct 2008 at IUCN World Conservation Congress
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
Local Action for Biodiversity
To guide, support, capacitate and motivate local governments and their partners from across the world to integrate biodiversity into all aspects of policy and decision making and implementation activities to result in increased and more sustainable biodiversity conservation.
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
ICLEI & IUCN: Building on Strengths
1. 2006: ICLEI World Congress – LAB established• Joint design workshop in Rome: LAB methodology• Joint LAB Cities recruitment• Joint Profiling of LAB Good Practices• Joint Project Development
2. 2007: IUCN ICLEI MoU • Matching the biodiversity know how of IUCN with ICLEI’s network• Awareness raising on the importance of biodiversity as a local issue• Sharing and disseminating good practices
3. 2008: Launch of Global Partnership on Cities and Biodiversity• New international support for local action (UNEP, UNESCO, CBD, Cities
and other international organisations)• ICLEI and IUCN are active drivers • IUCN mandate to strenghten its engagement with local governments
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
CASE STUDIES
21 Pilot City Project
Five step approach to biodiversity:1. Assess biodiversity (biodiversity report)
2. Commit at the highest political level
3. Plan a local biodiversity startegy and action plan (LBSAP)
4. Commit to implement the LBSAP
5. Implement 5 new biodiversity initiatives
Case Study on Cape Town:• One of the three cities in the world to be a biodiversity hotspot• A UNESCO World Heritage site within a city border • Good Practice example for addressing invasive species
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
STRUCTURE
Members
Council
Secretariat
Commissions
Steering Committees,
Specialist Groups, e.g. WCPA Task force on cities and protected areas
Regional & National Committees
Regional OfficesHeadquarters Country and Project OfficesSub-regional Offices
1. World Commission on Protected Areas2. Commission on Communication & Education3. Commission on Environment, Economic and
Social Policy4. Commission on Environmental Law5. Species Survival Commission6. Commission on Ecosystem Management
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
BUILDING THE ICLEI- IUCN INSTITUTIONAL RELATIONSHIP - OPTIONS
Programmatic – Possible Approaches
• Extend Local Action for Biodiversity
• Develop a joint program on urban biodiversity
• Establish liaison units in IUCN and ICLEI
Structural - Possible Approaches
Local governments/authorities as part of IUCN structure:• Members• Associate members• Members/participants in IUCN National Committees• Global network of local authorities
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
BUILDING THE INSTITUTIONAL RELATIONSHIP
IUCN Congress Resolution 2008• Including local and regional governmental authorities in the structure of
the Union• Recommend to the 5th Session of the World Conservation Congress
(2012) a reform to the IUCN Statutes to include local and regional authorities in the structure of the Union, as appropriate
IUCN Membership Views:• More decentralized countries supportive – local is where the action is• Federal and more centralized states have serious concerns• Implications to existing membership balance of NGO and Governments
IUCN Council with advice from its Commission on Environmental Law – developing options
Will consult with ICLEI
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE
HOW CAN YOU BE INVOLVED?
• Find out more about IUCN www.iucn.org• Become a partner of Countdown 2010 www.countdown2010.net• Join LAB www.iclei.org/lab