11 February 2013: Convened from 4-8 February 2013, in Geneva, Switzerland, the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC) of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) further streamlined the draft text of an international legal instrument on intellectual property and genetic resources, which will be submitted to the WIPO General Assembly, to be held from 23 September - 2 October 2013. However, several brackets remain indicating delegates' divergent opinions on key issues under negotiation.
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11 February 2013: The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) published its recommendations on the proposals to amend the Appendices of the Convention. The Secretariat consulted bodies concerned with the conservation and sustainable use of marine species and timber species about these proposals, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), which convened an Expert Advisory Panel to examine the proposals related to commercially-exploited aquatic species in detail.
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This session of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) will include a meeting of the Information System for the Promotion of Aquaculture in the Mediterranean (SIPAM).
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This Special Session of the Southwest Indian Ocean Fisheries Commission (SWIOFC) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) will take place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Current membership includes: Comoros, France, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Yemen. More information on the SWIOFC: http://www.fao.org/fishery/rfb/swiofc/en
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11 February 2013: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has released an assessment providing information on taxonomy, distribution, status, statistics, fisheries, bycatch, biologic and ecologic parameters on age and growth, food and feeding habits, reproductive biology and stock assessment of elasmobranchs in the Mediterranean and Black Sea.
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8 February 2013: The final report of the first session of the Plenary of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES-1), held from 21-26 January 2013, has been made available online.
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This workshop, titled "Custodian Farmers of Agricultural Biodiversity: Policy support for their roles in use and conservation," will bring together 22 tropical fruit tree farmers from India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal and Thailand, to share common experiences and challenges related to conserving and using biodiversity on the farm. Participating researchers will present related case studies. The workshop is being hosted by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and Bioversity International, in collaboration with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR) and Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Authority (PPVFRA).
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February 2013: The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and the UN University Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU-IAS) have released a report, titled "Governing the Forests: An Institutional Analysis of REDD+ and Community Forest Management in Asia." The report presents a background on REDD+, explores ways to link REDD+ to community forestry, and provides lessons learned and recommendations.
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This meeting, organized by the Albertine Rift Conservation Society (ARCOS) and The Mountain Partnership Secretariat, in collaboration with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and the Government of Rwanda, is supported by the MacArthur Foundation. The main objective of the meeting is to continue building an African agenda and a strong Mountain Partnership constituency on the sustainable development of mountain ecosystems, while contributing to climate change and water discussions. The meeting will provide an opportunity for participants to share views and experiences on the current state of sustainable development in mountain regions in Africa and to discuss joint activities, future challenges and opportunities. The one-day event will take place ahead of the wider Regional Great Lakes Stakeholders Forum.
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“Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition” will be the focus of World Food Day in 2013. The official World Food Day theme – announced at the start of every year by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) – gives focus to World Food Day observances and helps increase understanding of problems and solutions in the drive to end hunger.
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