Side Event
Concerted Action of Governments and NGOs for Preventing Species Extinction on Small Islands: A Significant Contribution to Achieving Aichi Targets 9 and 12.
Organizer
Island Conservation
Date and Time
18 October 2012 18:15 - 19:45
Meeting
Eleventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 11)
In partnership with the Government of Ecuador and with the participation of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), nations with islands and island nations (specific countries to be determined) and the Global Island Partnership (GLISPA), Island Conservation will describe how to prevent species extinction on small islands (Aichi Target 12) by removing invasive alien species (Aichi Target 9). Island Conservation will present the “Small Islands, Big Difference” Campaign as a way forward to achieve Aichi targets 9 and 12. The Campaign is guided by the results of the scientific analysis provided by the Threatened Island Biodiversity (TIB) database to be launched during COP-11. The TIB database is the world’s most comprehensive inventory of IUCN threatened species breeding on islands and at risk from invasive vertebrates, developed by Island Conservation, University of California at Santa Cruz, Birdlife International and the IUCN Invasive Species Specialist Group. A representative of the Government of Ecuador will present concrete examples from the Galápagos about the effectiveness of partnerships between government and NGOs in the field of threatened species conservation through the eradication of invasive alien vertebrates. The process, activities and roles and responsibilities in the implementation of the different phases of the work will be described; the conservation outcomes will be shared and analyzed. In addition to the example from Ecuador, additional field examples will be presented to illustrate the necessity of the catalytic support of the international community and to stress the need for a concerted action of governments, NGOs, multilateral institutions, aid agencies, local communities and private sector partners to eradicate invasive alien species from islands as the fundamental condition to successfully protect the world's most threatened species and islands.