7 March 2017
IPBES-5 Plenary Opens
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth
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The fifth session of the Plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-5) opened with a keynote address on the opportunities and risks of ecosystem-based mitigation strategies.

The Plenary was preceded by a one-day gathering of IPBES stakeholders during which stakeholder groups from all continents discussed how to engage on various IPBES-5 agenda items.

The IPBES Plenary will address, inter alia, assessments on the diverse conceptualization of multiple values of nature and its benefits; invasive alien species; and the sustainable use of biodiversity.

7 March 2017: The fifth session of the Plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-5) opened with a keynote address on the opportunities and risks of ecosystem-based mitigation strategies. In his presentation, Dr. Guy Midgley (South Africa) emphasized that because of these risks, decision-makers require the “best available science when setting policy and allocating resources.”

At the opening, IPBES Chair Robert Watson stressed the role that biodiversity and ecosystem services play for water and food security, human well-being and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Aichi Biodiversity Targets and the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change. Updating delegates on progress, IPBES Executive Secretary Anne Larigauderie highlighted the launch of the global assessment on biodiversity; progress in the regional and land degradation assessments; and increasing uptake of the assessment on pollination, pollinators and food security by national governments and international agencies.

Midgley then discussed the opportunities and risks presented by ecosystem-based mitigation strategies, such afforestation and bioenergy production coupled with carbon capture and storage. He said that while newly established forests can help sequester carbon, this may happen at the expense of biodiversity-rich ecosystems such as tropical grasslands. He further noted that while measures to protect biodiversity, such as reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD+), can contribute to reducing climate change, they may be in conflict with other objectives such as increasing agricultural production to ensure food security. He concluded by underlining the importance of policy-relevant scientific evidence to enable decision makers to balance opportunities and risks and enhance synergies between biodiversity and climate change.

Dr. Guy Midgley (South Africa) underlined the importance of policy-relevant scientific evidence to enable decision makers to balance opportunities and risks and enhance synergies between biodiversity and climate change.

IPBES-5 was preceded by a one-day gathering of IPBES stakeholders during which stakeholder groups from all continents discussed how to engage on various IPBES-5 agenda items. Several stakeholders reported on their activities in support of IPBES, including the creation of regional networks, contributions to assessments, and dissemination activities. Participants also reviewed the IPBES communication and outreach strategy and planned activities for disseminating the results of four regional assessments to be launched in 2018.

In a series of breakout sessions, stakeholders discussed their contributions to four items on the IPBES-5 agenda, namely future work on scenarios and models of biodiversity and ecosystem services; a scoping report for a methodological assessment of the diverse conceptualization of multiple values of nature and its benefits; the review of the Platform’s effectiveness; and indigenous and local knowledge systems (ILK). During the closing session, Günter Mitlacher, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), who facilitated the event on behalf of the Open-ended Network of IPBES stakeholders, announced that stakeholders will continue to consult during the IPBES Plenary to coordinate their engagement with regard to different agenda items.

On the sidelines of the event, the IPBES Secretariat signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Future Earth. Under the agreement, Future Earth will become a strategic partner of IPBES, supporting the mobilization of scientists and sustainability experts to contribute to the Platform’s work. Future Earth will work towards, among other objectives: increasing the number of experts that governments and institutions nominate to serve on IPBES assessments; mobilizing scientists and others to participate in and/or review IPBES assessments; and supporting the mobilization of funding around priorities for research and engagement identified through IPBES assessments.

The IPBES-5 Stakeholder Day was held 6 March, 2017 in Bonn, Germany preceding IPBES-5, which will be held 7-10 March at the same venue. The IPBES Plenary is expected to address the following assessments: methodological assessment regarding diverse conceptualization of multiple values of nature and its benefits; thematic assessment on invasive alien species; and thematic assessment on the sustainable use of biodiversity. The meeting will also consider other issues arising from the Work Programme, including: capacity building; indigenous and local knowledge systems; knowledge and data; policy support tools; and communication, stakeholder engagement and strategic partnerships. [IISD-RS Coverage of IPBES-5 and Stakeholder Day] [IPBES-5 Website] [Future Earth Press Release] [IPBES-5 Keynote]

 

 

 


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