Notification 2020-057

Dear Madam/Sir, I am pleased to inform Parties and stakeholders that the Government of Egypt, in the context of its Presidency of the fourteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 14) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), is organizing a webinar conference, with the Secretariat of the Convention, that will take place on 10 September 2020 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. (GMT +2). The concept note is available on the meeting webpage at https://www.cbd.int/meetings/HB-OM-2020-01, and the agenda will be made available in due course. Set in the context of the current global health crisis and the Egyptian initiative for a coherent approach for addressing biodiversity loss, climate change, and land and ecosystem degradation, the webinar conference is intended to highlight the links between the health of the natural world and the health of people and explore how conserving and sustainably using biodiversity, combating land degradation, and fighting climate change can help to reduce the risks of future pandemics, as part of an inclusive and comprehensive “One Health” approach. The webinar conference will be led by the Minister of Environment of Egypt in her capacity as President of COP 14 and will include contributions by the Executive Secretaries of the three Rio Conventions and their respective COP Presidents, as well as heads of agency and experts from relevant international and United Nations organizations. The webinar will examine the need for action in four phases: a.) Taking immediate steps needed to protect the environment during the pandemic and in its immediate wake; b.) Building actions to address biodiversity loss, land degradation and climate change into stimulus packages to contribute to a just and sustainable socio-economic recovery; c.) Catalyzing the transformational changes needed in economies and societies to build back better after the pandemic; d.) Evaluating progress of the “One Health” approach in addressing cross-cutting issues related to biodiversity and health in an integrated manner. The outcome of the webinar conference will be transmitted to the upcoming United Nations Summit on Biodiversity and third meeting of the Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. It will also inform the meetings of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands that will all take place in 2021. Interested participants can register at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4134741372519882256. Upon registration, you will receive a confirmation e-mail containing information on how to join the webinar. The Government of Egypt and the Secretariat of the CBD look forward to your participation in this webinar conference and thank you for your continued support to the work of the Convention. Please accept, Madam/Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Executive Secretary

To: CBD National Focal Points, Cartagena Protocol National Focal Points, ABS National Focal Points, international organizations, indigenous peoples and local communities and relevant organizations