Presentation to consular representatives on biodiversity


The Montreal Consular Corps is an organization that regroups consular representatives based in Montreal, many of which are called on a regular basis to represent their governments at the meetings hosted by the Convention. As the diplomatic community is marked by a high turnover rate, the initiative to address consular representatives in the seat of the Convention was particularly welcome. 

The session allowed participants to be acquainted with the work of the Convention and its areas of interest. As the Annex to Decision VI/19 acknowledges, "the concept of biodiversity poses particular communication and education challenges due to its comprehensiveness, complexity and ill-defined nature." Mr. Zedan talked about the basic concepts underlying the biological diversity problematique, explained the main drivers of biodiversity loss and the ways in which the CBD can contribute to sustainable development. Participants familiarized themselves with the Convention's modus operandi, its thematic programmes of work and its cross-cutting issues.

In addition, the presentation discussed the role of the CBD in the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals, in particular in the reduction of child mortality, the improvement of maternal health and in the fight against HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases.