Call for a New Deal For Nature with Higher Ambition and Commitment to Implement Global Biodiversity Conservation

The United Nations Biodiversity Conference with decision makers from more than 190 countries that includes the fourteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 14) will take place 17 – 29 November 2018 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Under the theme “Investing in biodiversity for people and planet”, Governments will work to step up efforts to halt the biodiversity loss and protect the ecosystems that support food and water security and health for billions of people.

At this Conference, Parties to the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) will discuss efforts needed to achieve the Aichi Biodiversity Targets as well as lay the groundwork for the process of developing the successor of the current Global Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020. COP 14 will also include an innovative discussion on mainstreaming biodiversity into five core sectors of the economy – infrastructure, mining, energy and gas, manufacturing, and health.

Biodiversity and climate change will also be discussed. The conference will of course also look at the important question of protected areas both on land and sea, and other measures for enhanced conservation and management of biodiversity. Delegates will continue long-standing discussions on ecologically or biologically significant marine areas.

Parties to the Convention will also have important policy discussions on a variety of thematic and cross-cutting issues that will set global and national policy directions for the protection of biodiversity.

Ahead of this Conference, the latest edition of WWF’s Living Planet Report painted an alarming picture of the state of the planet. Global wildlife populations have declined, on average, by 60 per cent in little over 40 years largely due to threats and pressures linked to human activity. In the past 30 to 50 years, we have lost 20 percent of the Amazon, almost half of the world’s coral reefs, and 30 to 50 percent of the world’s mangroves.

WWF International's Director General - Dr. Marco Lambertini while sharing on a Thomas Reuters blog (Executive Perspectives) titled: It’s time for a New Deal for Nature and People notes that, 'Mankind is single handedly changing the face – and fate – of our ‘living planet’. And as we do so, we are failing to see that the flashing red lights of nature’s SOS are a warning sign for our own future as well.'

He adds that 'nature is the lifeline for the 7.6 billion people inhabiting planet Earth, providing the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe. It’s the source for countless products and services including medicines and raw materials for our homes and industries. Beyond the beauty and inspiration, nature provides services worth around US$125 trillion a year.'

Dr. Lambertini sounds a warning for the attention of COP14 that ' While nature is in crisis and we continue to take it for granted as we have always done. It is time we answer nature’s SOS.

He adds that there is no time to lose, as we have two years to work across actors, sectors and borders to seal a ‘New Deal for Nature and People’ that redefines how we value nature and ensures we safeguard biodiversity and the health of the planetary ecosystems.

Finance to Close Global Energy Access Gaps Dramatically Off-Track to Meet 2030 Targets - SE4ALL Report

The Energizing Finance: Understanding the Landscape 2018 report analyzes finance flows for electricity and clean cooking access in countries across Africa and Asia with the most significant access gaps. The report reveals alarming developments in several key areas of energy access finance that require urgent action to keep Sustainable Development Goal 7 - affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all – within reach.

Research shows annual investment of USD 52 billion is needed to meet universal electrification, yet finance commitments for electricity in the 20 ‘high-impact’ countries - representing 76% of those without electricity access - has barely increased, averaging just USD 30.2 billion annually.

For the second year in a row, finance tracked for clean cooking revealed a deeply confronting challenge: finance committed across the 20 countries with the largest clean cooking access gaps - representing 81 % of the global population without access – actually decreased 5% to an average of just USD 30 million, compared to the estimated annual investment needed of at least USD 4.4billion.

Of serious concern, finance for coal-powered energy is increasing, at a time when the International Panel on Climate Change is issuing stark warnings about stalling progress on the Paris Agreement targets. In the countries tracked, annual commitments for coal plants almost tripled, growing from USD 2.8 billion to USD 6.8 billion. The potential impacts of this increase pose a clear challenge to climate goals, the air we all breathe and the ability to bring energy to those that need it, at the speed promised.

Biofuel from Water Hyacinth opens a world of possibilities for Kisumu residents I WWF Kenya

The vast Lake Victoria is Africa’s largest lake and supports a myriad of flora and fauna ecosystem. Over 40 million people are dependent on the lake for their livelihoods. This critical lake is however under threat from the persistent water hyacinth weed that has invaded large parts of it, bringing with it enormous challenges, as witnessed by Mr. Richard Ochieng, a resident of Kisumu, and founder of Centre for Innovation Science and Technology in Africa