2 December 2009: Ahmed Djoghlaf, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Executive Secretary, has underlined the potential synergies among the Rio Conventions, noting that discussions on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD) will be an important part of the Copenhagen climate change negotiations.
Djoghlaf indicated the CBD’s support for present efforts to expand the commitments under the UNFCCC through REDD, under the condition that the biodiversity that underpins forest stability and the forest ecosystem services that ensure the livelihoods for indigenous peoples and local communities are considered.
The CBD Secretariat has recently launched two reports on the role of biodiversity for successful climate-change mitigation and adaptation, published as CBD Technical Series nos. 41 and 43. Biodiversity experts, including Ahmed Djoghlaf and Ian Redmond, Ambassador for the UN Year of the Gorilla, will be present at Forest Day 3, to be held on 13 December 2009, in Copenhagen, Denmark. [CBD Press Release][CBD Technical Series No. 41, Connecting Biodiversity and Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation: Report of the Second Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group on Biodiversity and Climate Change][CBD Technical Series No. 43, Forest Resilience, Biodiversity, and Climate Change: A Synthesis of the Biodiversity/Resilience/Stability Relationship in Forest Ecosystems]