Sha Zukang, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, delivered the welcoming address. The closing event included: presentation of the Forest Heroes Awards, recognizing five regional forest heroes for their energy and visionary approach; announcement of the winners of the 2011 Universal Postal Union’s international letter-writing competition winners, in which children imagined themselves as trees writing to people, as well as the 2011 International Children’s Art Contest to “Celebrate the Forests;” screening of film clips from the award-winning International Forest Film Festival, organized with the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival; and launch of the “Forest for People” book, with contributions from 75 authors from 35 countries.

Through activities held worldwide throughout 2011, the IYF sought to promote awareness of the issues confronting the world’s forests and the people who depend on them, and the vital role of people in the sustainable management of all types of forests. Several governments, regional and international organizations and Major Group members supported activities related to IYF 2011.

The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES) noted its promotion of the IYF message through its own work, such as by including approximately 350 tree species in its three Appendices, and by hosting workshops on agarwood, bigleaf mahogany and other tropical timber species.

biodiversity-l.iisd.org

The most recent countries to sign the Protocol (since 25 January 2012) are: Cambodia, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, El Salvador, Guinea Bissau, Honduras, Ireland, Kenya, Lebanon, Mongolia, Nigeria, the Republic of Moldova, Senegal, Thailand, and Ukraine.

The Nagoya Protocol, which was opened for signature on 2 February 2011, will enter into force 90 days after the deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification. Two countries, Gabon and Jordan, have thus far ratified the Protocol.

Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary to the Convention on Biological Diversity, said: “The signature of these 91 countries and the European Union effectively demonstrates that the international community is committed to early entry into force of this unique legal instrument at the service of sustainable development. I call on all Parties who have not yet done so to expedite their internal procedure of ratification in 2012, which coincides with the twentieth anniversary of the opening of signature of the Convention for Life on Earth.”

In order to become Parties to the Nagoya Protocol, those Parties to the Convention that was not able to sign the Protocol by 1 February 2012 are invited to accede to it by depositing an instrument of accession with the Depository. The entry into force of the Nagoya Protocol will provide greater legal certainty and transparency for both providers and users of genetic resources; creating a framework that promotes the use of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge while strengthening the opportunities for fair and equitable sharing of benefits from their use.

Hence, the Protocol will create new incentives to conserve biodiversity, sustainably use its components, and further enhance the contribution of biodiversity to sustainable development and human well-being.
Source: CBD

Dr. Gemedo in his welcoming speech said: “IBC is always open to work in collaboration with local and international organizations for mutual benefits. You are most welcome to the origin of mankind and one of the 12 Vavilovian centers of origin and diversity to cultivated crops.”

IBC’s Public Relation and Communication Director Ato Abiyot Berhanu presented on biodiversity and IBC’S current status and future plans. The presentation explains Ethiopia’s genetic resources, species, ecosystem and cultural diversity as well as IBC’s accomplishment since its establishment as Plant Genetic Resources Center (PGRC) in 1976.

Ethiopia, with land area of 1.12 million sq.km, has diverse ecosystems from the highest elevation of the Afroalpine and Subafroalpine Ecosystem of Simien (4550m asl) to the lowest point of Desert and Semidesert Ecosystem of Dallol (-120m bsl). Owing to this diverse topography and climatic variability, the country is endowed with rich plant, animal and microbial genetic diversity and associated indigenous knowledge.

The Gene bank is one of the leading Gene banks in Africa and has accomplished a tremendous work in exploration, collection, and conservation of plant genetic resources. Currently, the Gene bank holds more than 62, 334 accessions of 165 plant species in cold storage facilities obtained through collection, repatriation and donation; and more than 6,664 accessions of 234 species in field Gene banks.

Until recently, 286 species of microbial genetic resources and 5376 soil samples are conserved in Microbial Gene bank. Moreover, 17 in situ and ex situ field Gene banks of endangered forest, medicinal, and   forage and pasture plants have been established and they are expanding.

With regard to sustainable utilization, 100,639 accessions of seeds had been distributed from ex situ collections to different research and educational institutions and individual researchers in Ethiopia as well as worldwide.

While enjoying the traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony, the visitors raised some questions regarding Ethiopia’s experience with regard to climate change and its effect on biodiversity. Financial source and support for conservation, GMO and invasive species were major points raised by the visitors.  And experts from different areas of study gave enlightenment regarding the points raised.

According to experts response, the farmers are the primary victims of  climate change . That happens as a consequence of deforestation and land degradation; and being part of the world every impact of climate change also affects Ethiopia. On account of this, shift of species from low land to high land is taking place and it is believed that some species are endangered with climate change.

The country is also most affected by invasive species, most importantly forestry species such as Prosopis juliflora, Lantana camara and Acacia drepanolobium as well as weeds such as Parthenium histrophorus and Eichornia crassipes.

With regard to GMO, the Institute focuses on landraces (farmer’s varieties) and encourages their sustainable utilization. As a country, Ethiopia has rules and regulations on GMO and the issues are addressed accordingly.

After the discussion, the guests attended official visit to the main Gene bank.

Tourism represents both a threat and an opportunity to wetlands. Unsustainable tourism has been called a “devourer of landscapes” for the extensive changes it causes in land use and to local economies and cultures. At the same time, if planned and implemented according to best practices, it can provide political and financial support for conservation and sustainable (or wise) use of wetlands and related ecosystem services.

Sustainable tourism means putting the principles of sustainable development into practice by ensuring that tourism protects the environment, conserves biodiversity, respects local communities and their cultural heritage and values, and provides equitable socio-economic benefits to all stakeholders, including by contributing to poverty alleviation.

With the ambitious goal (defined through Aichi target 11) of achieving by 2020, through ecologically representative systems of protected areas, the effective conservation of 17 per cent of the world’s terrestrial and inland water areas and 10 per cent of marine and coastal areas (many of which are wetlands), and with tourism already being the largest global market-based contributor to park agencies’ budgets, tourism is slated to play a larger role in the implementation of both the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Ramsar Convention.

In the United States of America, for example, in 2006 more than 31 per cent of adults fed, photographed and observed wildlife, spending US$ 45 billion in the process; 1.5 million waterfowl hunters have funded conservation projects and generated a total of US$ 50 billion annually in economic activity; more than 35 million Americans take part in recreational fishing, almost all of it in wetlands, spending more than US $37 billion each year. The benefits of wetland tourism are not limited to rural or remote areas: some 200,000 visitors per year enjoy the 40-hectare London Wetland Centre alongside the River Thames, right in the heart of one of the world’s major cities. In developing countries, wetlands tourism is equally important: emblematic examples include the Okavango Delta in Botswana, the African Great Lakes, the Pantanal/Chaco region in Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay (the world’s largest Ramsar site), the Tonle Sap in Cambodia – one of Asia’s largest freshwater lakes, and most coral reefs. Tourism of some sort is invariably associated with most wetlands, large to small, and in most rural and urban areas throughout the world.

In 2010, the number of international tourists reached 940 million, and this is forecast to grow to around 1.6 billion by 2020. This economic activity generated by travel and tourism, also associated with wetlands, represents around 5 per cent of global GDP and up to one in every eight of the world’s jobs. International tourism expenditure linked to wetlands can be estimated at around US$ 925 billion each year, and this does not include the vast numbers of domestic tourists (thought to represent up to seven times the volume of international arrivals) or visitors who do not stay overnight. Economic values of wetlands for tourism are therefore huge.

Source:  CBD