IUCN
Madame Chairperson, Mr. Secretary General, Honourable Ministers, Distinguished
Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am glad to be here at these important discussions and am honoured to have
been invited to bring you a message from the environmental community that IUCN
represents. IUCN has long recognised that our mission of conserving nature for
future generations means nothing if it is not contributing to a sustainable and
dignified life for all human beings, living in harmony with nature. You may be
aware that the phrase ?sustainable development? was first coined by IUCN in our
1980 World Conservation Strategy, written in partnership with UNEP and WWF,
and so I stand before you as a founding member of the sustainable development
family.
At a time when CSD is considering the issues of agriculture, Africa,
desertification, drought, rural development and land, the world is going through
one of the worst financial crises since the Great Depression. People around the
world are losing their jobs, their homes, their pensions, or worse. Governments
are cobbling together enormous stimulus packages to avoid economic disaster.
And apart from the financial crisis, we also have to contend with an
unprecedented energy and food crisis as we prepare for this December?s
meetings in Copenhagen, where tough decisions about how the global community
will cope with climate change will have to be taken. We are living history on a
scale as never before.
As your discussions have demonstrated, nowhere in the world are the negative
effects of our unsustainable lifestyles and practices felt more strongly than in
Africa. We know today that we can neither attain the Millennium Development
Goals, nor effectively tackle our global environmental challenges if we continue to
neglect the African continent. This means not only investing in agriculture,
building infrastructure and investing in markets ? however important these may
be. It requires a much more concerted effort to integrate Africa into world trade
and a significant boost in development aid to the African continent. Looking
forward to CSD 18 & 19, we already, in this cycle, need to pay particular attention
to the issue of sustainable consumption and production and the impact thereof on
developing countries such as those in Africa.
As the financial stories dominate the media and the delegates here at CSD focus
on the needs of people, there is a temptation to treat the environment as a less
important issue. I sincerely believe this would be a serious mistake.
Why do I say this?
? First, the ?business as usual? approach to solving the world?s problems has
resulted in using natural resources at a scale and pace that is not sustainable;
? Second, the continuing increase of population, combined with social and
economic inequalities are amplifying the stress we put on ecosystems and the
services they provide with consequent adverse impacts on human well being;
and
? Third, our past experiences in addressing global challenges may no longer
serve our purpose because they do not include the added stress of climate
change which is, literally, changing everything.
In short, we are running out of time to reverse a series of dangerous trends. For
too long, we have been taking much more than the Earth can produce -- whether
we like it or not, we must now recognize that we have overdrawn our account of
natural assets, and the natural environment upon which we depend is
compromised as a result. It can recuperate, but the treatment has to be real, on a
massive scale, and immediate. We need to increase our investments in nature
now.
What do we mean by ?investing in nature?? We mean supporting the
environment?s ability to continue to provide the billions of dollars worth of
services that it has provided us for millennia ?clean air and water; food, clothing
and medicines; and inspiration for our cultures and spirituality. Investment in
nature requires an understanding that the environment is not a separate 'sector'
that should be thought of once everything else is ?fixed?, but rather as a crucial
element to address the many challenges we face today. Investing in nature is
taking advantage of the interdependence of our environment, our economy and
our society. Investing in nature, through ecosystem-based and landscape scale
approaches to managing today?s challenges, is an effective and achievable means
to decrease people?s vulnerability to drought, desertification, and food insecurity.
Without investment in nature, our objectives for managing today?s sustainable
development challenges of food security and poverty reduction are doomed to
failure.
As the richer nations of the world work to restore their economies and manage the
impacts of climate change, we cannot abandon our efforts to promote poverty
reduction and sustainable development. We know that poor people will suffer the
brunt of climate change ? and in particular vulnerable groups such as women and
the rural poor will pay the highest price. The combination of economic hardship,
degraded ecosystems and climate change is a potentially explosive cocktail. If we
want development assistance to do more than make misery tolerable, then
environmental considerations should be at the very centre of development
policies and programs. Investing in nature also makes sense in the developing
world because it gives poorer people the necessary tools to adapt to a rapidly
changing world.
Perhaps one of the best examples of what can be achieved by investing in nature
is the proposal for REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and
Degradation). Stopping deforestation alone could avoid from 10-20% of current
CO² emissions. We could capture an additional 117 Gigatonnes of CO2 emissions
by restoring the 850 million hectares of degraded forests around the world. And
that additional capture could be done while also improving local livelihoods
simply by using techniques such as agroforestry. Why we would pass up the
opportunity to make such a difference ? using available technology and capacity ?
is beyond imagination.
Sustainable rural development means much more than transferring new
technologies to the poor corners of the world. It requires a greater emphasis on
building the resilience of rural communities. This is not to say that we should not
invest in technology ? on the contrary. Investing in cleaner and more energyefficient
technologies and business practices is in our interest and will help our
slumping economy through the kind of investments that our environment also
needs.
To get us from where we are today to the ?post-carbon? economy of the future,
we have to take the business of investing in nature seriously. Like a healthy
immune system in a human being, a healthy environment protects us from the
effects of the many ills of our time.
As the governments of the world embark on financial bailout plans and finding a
way to deal with climate change and our other pressing challenges, we cannot let
the debates about these issues make us forget that we are running out of time
very quickly. The level of commitment for change being shown by the global
community to address these challenges is, in fact, an incredible opportunity to reframe
our thinking and to put our environment at the centre of the discussions.
Massive investments in nature ? in the way we protect it, manage it and govern it ?
cannot be done alone. We will succeed only if we involve partners from all parts of
society ? from governments to the private sector to civil society, including
indigenous peoples. IUCN has a great deal of experience doing just that.
Everyone has a stake in the outcome and we must all play our part.
Finally, transforming to a ?decarbonised economy? and giving the world?s most
vulnerable people a fighting chance to deal with poverty, food insecurity and
vulnerability in our rapidly changing world requires us to ACT NOW. We need the
political will to put it in action. That, in great part, is your responsibility. You can
count on us in the environmental movement to support you with all of our energy
and capacity.
Thank you.
Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am glad to be here at these important discussions and am honoured to have
been invited to bring you a message from the environmental community that IUCN
represents. IUCN has long recognised that our mission of conserving nature for
future generations means nothing if it is not contributing to a sustainable and
dignified life for all human beings, living in harmony with nature. You may be
aware that the phrase ?sustainable development? was first coined by IUCN in our
1980 World Conservation Strategy, written in partnership with UNEP and WWF,
and so I stand before you as a founding member of the sustainable development
family.
At a time when CSD is considering the issues of agriculture, Africa,
desertification, drought, rural development and land, the world is going through
one of the worst financial crises since the Great Depression. People around the
world are losing their jobs, their homes, their pensions, or worse. Governments
are cobbling together enormous stimulus packages to avoid economic disaster.
And apart from the financial crisis, we also have to contend with an
unprecedented energy and food crisis as we prepare for this December?s
meetings in Copenhagen, where tough decisions about how the global community
will cope with climate change will have to be taken. We are living history on a
scale as never before.
As your discussions have demonstrated, nowhere in the world are the negative
effects of our unsustainable lifestyles and practices felt more strongly than in
Africa. We know today that we can neither attain the Millennium Development
Goals, nor effectively tackle our global environmental challenges if we continue to
neglect the African continent. This means not only investing in agriculture,
building infrastructure and investing in markets ? however important these may
be. It requires a much more concerted effort to integrate Africa into world trade
and a significant boost in development aid to the African continent. Looking
forward to CSD 18 & 19, we already, in this cycle, need to pay particular attention
to the issue of sustainable consumption and production and the impact thereof on
developing countries such as those in Africa.
As the financial stories dominate the media and the delegates here at CSD focus
on the needs of people, there is a temptation to treat the environment as a less
important issue. I sincerely believe this would be a serious mistake.
Why do I say this?
? First, the ?business as usual? approach to solving the world?s problems has
resulted in using natural resources at a scale and pace that is not sustainable;
? Second, the continuing increase of population, combined with social and
economic inequalities are amplifying the stress we put on ecosystems and the
services they provide with consequent adverse impacts on human well being;
and
? Third, our past experiences in addressing global challenges may no longer
serve our purpose because they do not include the added stress of climate
change which is, literally, changing everything.
In short, we are running out of time to reverse a series of dangerous trends. For
too long, we have been taking much more than the Earth can produce -- whether
we like it or not, we must now recognize that we have overdrawn our account of
natural assets, and the natural environment upon which we depend is
compromised as a result. It can recuperate, but the treatment has to be real, on a
massive scale, and immediate. We need to increase our investments in nature
now.
What do we mean by ?investing in nature?? We mean supporting the
environment?s ability to continue to provide the billions of dollars worth of
services that it has provided us for millennia ?clean air and water; food, clothing
and medicines; and inspiration for our cultures and spirituality. Investment in
nature requires an understanding that the environment is not a separate 'sector'
that should be thought of once everything else is ?fixed?, but rather as a crucial
element to address the many challenges we face today. Investing in nature is
taking advantage of the interdependence of our environment, our economy and
our society. Investing in nature, through ecosystem-based and landscape scale
approaches to managing today?s challenges, is an effective and achievable means
to decrease people?s vulnerability to drought, desertification, and food insecurity.
Without investment in nature, our objectives for managing today?s sustainable
development challenges of food security and poverty reduction are doomed to
failure.
As the richer nations of the world work to restore their economies and manage the
impacts of climate change, we cannot abandon our efforts to promote poverty
reduction and sustainable development. We know that poor people will suffer the
brunt of climate change ? and in particular vulnerable groups such as women and
the rural poor will pay the highest price. The combination of economic hardship,
degraded ecosystems and climate change is a potentially explosive cocktail. If we
want development assistance to do more than make misery tolerable, then
environmental considerations should be at the very centre of development
policies and programs. Investing in nature also makes sense in the developing
world because it gives poorer people the necessary tools to adapt to a rapidly
changing world.
Perhaps one of the best examples of what can be achieved by investing in nature
is the proposal for REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and
Degradation). Stopping deforestation alone could avoid from 10-20% of current
CO² emissions. We could capture an additional 117 Gigatonnes of CO2 emissions
by restoring the 850 million hectares of degraded forests around the world. And
that additional capture could be done while also improving local livelihoods
simply by using techniques such as agroforestry. Why we would pass up the
opportunity to make such a difference ? using available technology and capacity ?
is beyond imagination.
Sustainable rural development means much more than transferring new
technologies to the poor corners of the world. It requires a greater emphasis on
building the resilience of rural communities. This is not to say that we should not
invest in technology ? on the contrary. Investing in cleaner and more energyefficient
technologies and business practices is in our interest and will help our
slumping economy through the kind of investments that our environment also
needs.
To get us from where we are today to the ?post-carbon? economy of the future,
we have to take the business of investing in nature seriously. Like a healthy
immune system in a human being, a healthy environment protects us from the
effects of the many ills of our time.
As the governments of the world embark on financial bailout plans and finding a
way to deal with climate change and our other pressing challenges, we cannot let
the debates about these issues make us forget that we are running out of time
very quickly. The level of commitment for change being shown by the global
community to address these challenges is, in fact, an incredible opportunity to reframe
our thinking and to put our environment at the centre of the discussions.
Massive investments in nature ? in the way we protect it, manage it and govern it ?
cannot be done alone. We will succeed only if we involve partners from all parts of
society ? from governments to the private sector to civil society, including
indigenous peoples. IUCN has a great deal of experience doing just that.
Everyone has a stake in the outcome and we must all play our part.
Finally, transforming to a ?decarbonised economy? and giving the world?s most
vulnerable people a fighting chance to deal with poverty, food insecurity and
vulnerability in our rapidly changing world requires us to ACT NOW. We need the
political will to put it in action. That, in great part, is your responsibility. You can
count on us in the environmental movement to support you with all of our energy
and capacity.
Thank you.