Conference Program

tba., German Federal Minstry for Education and Research (BMBF)David Obura, Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)

Pavan Sukhdev, CEO GIST Impact, former President and Chair of WWF International

An important prerequisite for reversing biodiversity loss is illuminating the value of nature and incorporating biodiversity values in decision-making. However, identifying the “true” value of biodiversity and ecosystem services is challenging.

With growing standards in daily life and the expectation of a permanent economic growth, resource demands particularly in the Global North have risen dramatically since the 1950’s. This has led and continues to lead to the destruction of highly vulnerable ecosystems, e.g. in the coastal areas in West Africa, in the Amazon region or in poorly researched but very particular ecosystems in Central Asia (e.g. southern Mongolia).

The protection of biodiversity and particularly of "sexy species" is of high interest for the public. Biodiversity hotspots and many of the more popularly perceived sexy species, such as tigers, elephants, rare birds and insects or medically relevant plant species are mainly concentrated in the Global South.

As we conclude a day filled with insightful discussions, we invite you to unwind and celebrate creativity through the art of spoken word.

Is it realistic and will it be sufficient to protect 30% (as proposed by COP 15) or even 50% (as proposed by E.O. Wilson) of the Earth’s land and water areas (land-sparing approach) to stop biodiversity loss? Or do we need to use the remaining 70% (or 50%) of areas more sustainably and nature friendly (land-sharing approach)?

There is no doubt that the 23 targets of the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework are highly welcome and ambitious - the challenge now is to implement the agreement of the Kunming-Montreal COP 15. This raises the question of which procedures and methods of implementation can and should be used to achieve the objectives of these targets appropriately.

Driven by globalization, transformation processes in society, technology and economy gain more and more importance for current and future biodiversity trends.