19 October 2010: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) launched the International Partnership for the Satoyama Initiative, a platform for organizations engaged in integrating conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in production landscapes, including forests and agricultural lands.

At the launch event, held during the Tenth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 10) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Nagoya, Japan, Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary of the CBD, said he was proud to support this important partnership. He emphasized that the partnership will support the new CBD biodiversity strategy, which underscores that “biodiversity loss can no longer be treated as a stand-alone problem, since it is linked with issues such as poverty, climate change, water scarcity, growth in demand, development and international conflict.”

The GEF Secretariat and the Japan Ministry of Environment are working on a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on the Satoyama Initiative. It recognizes that the GEF possesses a comprehensive package of financial options that can further the goals of the Satoyama Initiative. Based on the MOU, the GEF will facilitate the use of its grant modalities, including enabling activities, Small Grants Programme (SGP), and medium and full size projects, as leveraged opportunities for activities related to the Satoyama Initiative, provided they are eligible under the GEF-5 Biodiversity Focal Area Strategy, and attend to country needs and priorities. [GEF Press Release] [Ahmed Djoghlaf’s Speech on the Satoyama Initiative][Ahmed Djoghlaf Presentation at the Biodiversity Governor’s Summit]