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‘Weather wars’ in times of climate change

In the summer, when heat waves scorch cities or heavy rains flood the coasts, some climate scientists and environmentalists will point out any plausible connections to global warming, hoping today’s weather will help people understand tomorrow’s danger from climate change.

‘Profound ignorance’: Microbes, a missing piece in the biodiversity puzzle

Scientists are clear: the number of plant and animal species on Earth is declining. The climate crisis, habitat loss, pollution and the illegal wildlife trade are all pushing species toward extinction. Researchers especially worry that losing too much biodiversity could push the earth past a tip ...

‘I get scared’: the young activists sounding the alarm from climate tipping points

For millions of young people around the world, climate breakdown is something they have known their entire lives. Many live in regions that are particularly at risk of being affected by tipping points - parts of the Earth’s system where small changes, such as increased temperatures, could lead t ...

‘Ecological civilisation’: an empty slogan or will China act on the environment?

This week, China took charge of hosting a major UN environmental conference for the first time, at the opening of Cop15 in Kunming. The world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitter and largest consumer of natural resources might seem a strange choice to host talks to stop the destruction of ecosystems ...

national strategies for the implementation of the CBD PRogramme for protected areas

The 7th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP-7) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) adopted a Programme of Work on Protected Areas. It emphasizes that the goals it has included allow a framework within which national and regional targets could be developed according to natio ...

Young environmentalists ‘plant the future’ in Colombia’s Amazon

Felipe “Pipe” Henao is a young environmentalist from the small town of Calamar in southeastern Colombia. At the meeting point of the Amazon and Orinoco basins, it’s an area of abundant biodiversity and an important biological corridor to the Andes mountains.

YouPEC 2010: European Youth Perspective Conference on Biodiversity - Third Edition

1 - 6 July 2010, Geel, Belgium

Yes, this is a forest

‘We understand the value of forests beyond the price tag of timber. We recognise that our forests are crucial for wildlife to survive.‘ Tesni Clare made some interesting points in the article ‘This is not a forest’, recently published in The Ecologist, not least about the importance of healthy f ...

World should act with sense of responsibility and unity, and work to foster a community of life for man and nature: Xi Jinping

President Xi Jinping pointed out that climate change has posed severe challenges to human survival and development. Faced with unprecedented challenges in global environmental governance, the international community needs to come up with unprecedented ambition and action, discuss ways to tackle ...

World Remains Sharply Divided on Climate Change Targets Ahead of 'Crucial 12 Months'

When it comes to preventing the worst of climate change, “the point of no return is no longer over the horizon,” United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned Sunday on the eve of a crucial round of intergovernmental talks at the UN’s annual climate summit.

World Oceans Day: What is the blue economy?

Wednesday (8 June) is World Oceans Day, and the UN is set to host an Ocean and Climate Change Dialogue shortly after. Non-state actors are set to participate more than ever before – so could this year be a tipping point for scaling investment to create a thriving ‘blue economy’?

Why the conversation about climate change and migration needs to change

If you haven’t seen the projections, you’ve probably still absorbed the gist of them: At some point in the not-too-distant future an astronomical number of people will likely be displaced by climate change. Estimates range from 140 million to 1.2 billion by 2050.

Why is an ocean current critical to world weather losing steam? Scientists search the Arctic for answers.

Summer sea ice has been shrinking so dramatically here in the Fram Strait, high in the Arctic between Norway and Greenland, that researchers who make this trip annually point out missing patches like memories of departed friends.

Why eating less meat is the best thing you can do for the planet in 2019

Recycling or taking the bus rather than driving to work has its place, but scientists are increasingly pointing to a deeper lifestyle change that would be the single biggest way to help the planet: eating far less meat.

What four years at sea taught me about our relationship to the ocean

It was on day 11, I think, that I stopped getting out of bed at all. I had already let my hygiene standards slip to the point that a large knot was starting to form in my hair. Later my mother would have to cut it out with scissors. She didn’t mind. We were all in the same boat.

What do record ocean temperatures tell us about climate change?

In 2019, the oceans reached higher temperatures than at any other point in recorded human history, according to a new analysis published on 13 January in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences (1). The new record demonstrates, unequivocally, the reality of global warming

What climate change in the Arctic means for the rest of us

The Arctic, a summer of heat, melting and fire was rounded off by news that 2019 saw the second-lowest ever minimum extent of sea ice. That’s the point in early autumn each year when scientists say that the Arctic Ocean will begin to freeze again. By that measure, only 2012 had less sea ice than ...

Weak policy oversight could be pushing Brazilian forests closer to a tipping point

Home to more than 60% of the Amazon rainforest, the largest tropical forest in the world, Brazil is beyond rich in biodiversity and life. The country is also rife with deforestation, and violations of environmental laws and Indigenous people’s rights.

We saved the puffins. Now a warming planet is unraveling that work.

I stepped onto the battlefield of climate change, sidestepping carcass after carcass. In the grass were the remains of Arctic terns, common terns, and roseate terns. Along the boulders, researchers pointed out dead puffin chicks.

WHO Covid-19 report shows clear link between biodiversity loss and zoonotic disease – Greenpeace reaction

In its official report on SARS-CoV-2’s origins the World Health Organization (WHO) pointed to the potential disease risks of contact between wildlife and people, showing the life-threatening risk of natural ecosystem destruction, which is breaking down the buffer zone scientists say protects us ...

Visit of High Level Delegation of the United Kingdom to the Secretariat of the CBD

A High level delegation of British government officials visited the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) on 21 and 22 June 2007. The delegation from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) comprised Mr. Martin Brasher, Deputy Director, Wildlife Habit ...

Video: How can we eat without cooking the planet?

Professor Susan Jebb , Oxford's diet and population health expert maintains, "We cannot meet Net Zero targets without changing our diet.". Talking in the latest of 10 videos from leading Oxford experts in the run up to the COP26 climate conference, Professor Jebb points out that agriculture acco ...

Vaccine trial for killer elephant virus begins

"She's our wonder baby!" says elephant keeper Katie Morrison, smiling broadly. Katie points to five-year-old Indali, an elephant survivor of an often deadly virus, which has killed seven calves at Chester Zoo.

UNEP/CBD/WS-CB/LAC/1/2

Report of the Capacity-Building Workshop on Networking and Information Exchange for National Focal Points and Indigenous and Local Communities in the Latin America and the Caribbean Region

UNEP/CBD/WG8J/5/INF/14

Report of the Capacity-Building Workshop on Networking and Information Exchange for National Focal Points and Indigenous and Local Communities in the Latin America and the Caribbean Region

UNEP/CBD/WG8J/4/6

Participatory Mechanisms for Indigenous and Local Communities in the Work of the Convention: The Role of the Thematic Focal Point Under the Clearing-House Mechanism

UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/3/INF/3

National Focal Points for the Clearing-House Mechanism under the Convention on Biological Diversity<br>(as of August 20, 1997)

UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/3/INF/2

National Focal Points of the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity<br>(as of August 26, 1997)

UNEP/CBD/COP/8/INF/37

The Relationship between the TRIPS Agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity - Summary of Issues Raised and Points Made - Submission by the WTO Secretariat

UNEP/CBD/COP/4/INF/5

List of National Focal Points, SBSTTA Focal Points and Clearing-House Mechanism Focal Points

UNEP/CBD/COP/3/INF/11

List of National Focal Points of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Clearing House Mechanism

UNEP/CBD/COP/2/6/ANNEX2

Annex II <br> Geographical Distribution of the National Focal Points

UNEP/CBD/CHM/RW/1/INF/2

CHM National Focal Points for Latin America and the Caribbean as of 30 September 1997

UNEP/CBD/BS/COP-MOP/1/INF/18

Summary report on the status of the nomination of the relevant National Focal Points, Competent National Authorities, Points of Contact for Emergency Measures and Biosafety Clearing-House Focal Points

UNEP/CBD/AHTEG/TK-CHM/1/INF/1

Report concerning a proposal for the establishment of a focal point for traditional knowledge within the Clearing-house Mechanism of the Convention on Biodiversity

UNEP/CBD/AHTEG/TK-CHM/1/2

The development and establishment of a thematic focal point within the Clearing-House Mechanism and the development of communication mechanisms among indigenous and local communities

UN panel's grim climate change report: 'Parts of the planet will become uninhabitable'

Life in some locations on the planet is rapidly reaching the point where it will be too hot for the species that live there to survive, international climate experts said in a report Monday.

Trees in the wetlands emit more methane than researchers thought

Historically the thick green of the Amazon has been our planet’s largest carbon sink, though this tipping point has also been breached earlier this year. But a new wave of research over the last few years, including a new study published recently in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Societ ...

Transforming practices in agricultural landscapes: tools to facilitate best practice for biodiversity

Land conversion is the primary driver of biodiversity loss with over 50% of deforestation due to agriculture, yet the CBD recognises that businesses are amongst the least engaged of stakeholders. This session brings together conservation organisations that are working with progressive businesses ...

Transformative Adaptation to Climate Change in Southeast Asian Coastal Cities: Entry Points for Jakarta and Ho Chi Minh City, December 2020

This study is part of the UNRISD project “Transformative Adaptation to Climate Change in Southeast Asian Coastal Cities” which explores adaptation decisionmaking processes and barriers to transformative solutions in order to inform more progressive policy making in the context of Southeast Asian ...

Training Workshop for Government Officials in the Use of the Biosafety Clearing-House Successfully Concluded

Bonn, 11 May 2008. A training workshop on the use of the Biosafety Clearing-House (BCH) ended last evening with a call to mobilize additional resources to further build the capacities of developing countries in this area. More than 60 participants, including over 50 national focal points for t ...

Tide turns for an Italian coastal wasteland

Torre Guaceto, an eight-kilometre long stretch of coastline north-west of Brindisi, used to be known as a centre for poor fishing practices, black market smuggling and a drop-off point for illegal immigration.

Threats to the island biodiversity by military base constructions in Okinawa, Japan and Jeju, Korea

The theme of the International Day for Biological Diversity 2014 was "Island Biodiversity". Islands and their surrounding sea has often unique ecosystem connected to rivers and forests. They are rich in biodiversity, endemic and endangered species/subspecies. However, in islands and their coasta ...

Thousands of scientists warn climate tipping points ‘imminent’

Thousands of scientists have repeated calls for urgent action to tackle the climate emergency, warning that several tipping points are now imminent.

This year’s World Day to Combat Desertification shows the importance of being inclusive as we cooperate to restore and rehabilitate degraded land. It also points to the convergence of international action and landmark agreements recently adopted which recognize the links between the different global challenges of our times.

This scientist wants you to send him dead mosquitoes in the post

Most people won’t thank you for posting them a dead mosquito. But for Canadian scientist Dan Peach, each squished mozzie is another valuable data point in his quest to find out how far the insects are travelling as a result of climate change.

These are the ‘positive’ tipping points that could slow global warming

There may be light at the end of the tunnel in the battle to reduce carbon emissions. Governments and institutions could help halt carbon emissions with just a few carefully selected policy measures, according to a new paper, which looked at the experience of the energy industry and changing tre ...

The “National Commission for the Sustainable Development of Peoples and Traditional Communities” in Brazil: an experience in the criation of public spaces for indigenous peoples and local communities”.

The main objective of the event will be to present the experience of introducing the National Commission for the Sustainable Development of Peoples and Traditional Communities in Brazil as an initiative in the creation of spaces for the inclusion of indigenous peoples and local communities in th ...

The seven most crucial climate change novels

Every day brings fresh and ever more alarming news about the state of the global environment. To speak of mere “climate change” is inadequate now, for we are in a “climate emergency.” It seems as though we are tripping over more tipping points than we knew existed.

The project SelfPAs (Self-financing Protected Areas): guidelines, tools, best-practice and guidance on how to improve their financial self-reliance.

Thanks to the variety of points of view and experiences that Federparchi and the other partner PAs have contributed with, a vast series of elements have emerged that have allowed the project to identify the “ingredients” that make the difference between a thriving PA and a PA trying to survive. ...