The annual World Wetlands Day was celebrated on 2 February 2015 to mark the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971 in Ramsar, Iran, and help raise public awareness of the value and importance of wetlands.
Held under the theme ‘Wetlands for our future,' it sought to highlight the many ways in which we can all contribute to their conservation and restoration.
2 February 2015: The annual World Wetlands Day was celebrated on 2 February 2015, marking the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971 in Ramsar, Iran, and helping to raise public awareness of the value and importance of wetlands. Held under the theme ‘Wetlands for our future,’ it sought to highlight the many ways in which we can all contribute to their conservation and restoration.
According to Ramsar, wetlands provide numerous benefits and services for humanity, in particular water and food. Ramsar underlines that wetlands: purify and filter harmful waste from water; act as nature’s shock absorbers; provide sustainable livelihoods and products; help to fight climate change; provide water-related ecosystem services; are productive areas for plant life, animals and wetland agriculture; and are the major habitat for most of the world’s waterbirds and key habitat for migratory species.
Emphasizing “the full name” of the Ramsar Convention with its specific reference to waterfowl habitat, Jacques Trouvilliez, Executive Secretary, Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA), urged for a partnership between AEWA and the Ramsar Convention.
Underscoring the importance of wetlands for future generations, Christopher Briggs, Secretary General, Ramsar Convention, highlighted an opportunity to build, with the restoration of wetlands, a “groundswell of opinion” and involve numerous concerned individuals wishing to make a difference.
Achim Steiner, UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director, emphasized that, while wetlands provide services worth an estimated US$15 trillion worldwide, the economic cost of carbon-rich mangroves is at US$42 billion in economic damages annually. Noting a key role wetlands play in the post-2015 sustainable development agenda, he further underscored the World Wetlands Day’s role in “shining greater light” on the challenges faced by wetlands today.
Observing that 64% of wetlands have been destroyed, with 40% of this loss taking place in the last 40 years, Monique Barbut, Executive Secretary, UN Convention to Combat Desertification, stressed that the loss of wetlands “comes at a cost we simply cannot afford,” and that their preservation and restoration is vital.
This year’s World Wetlands Day invited people to commit to making small changes that can help to slow the destruction of wetlands, for example by pledging to take shorter showers or use reusable shopping bags. “There is no effort too small,” said Barbut. Ramsar is also running a wetland photo competition for entrants aged 15-24, aiming to inspire the next generation to secure wetlands for all. [WWD Webpage] [CBD Press Brief] [UNCCD Press Release] [CMS Press Release] [UNEP Press Release] [Ramsar Secretary General’s Statement] [Ramsar Press Release]