Event: International Expert and Stakeholder Workshop on the Contribution of Indigenous and Local Knowledge Systems to IPBES [viewed]
The International Expert and Stakeholder Workshop on the Contribution of Indigenous and Local Knowledge Systems to IPBES: Building Synergies with Science will be convened by the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) Multidisciplinary Expert Panel and hosted by the Ministry of Environment, Japan. It is being co-organised by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the UN University (UNU). The objectives of the workshop are to examine and identify procedures and approaches for working with indigenous and local knowledge systems in the framework of IPBES; and to review and assess possible conceptual frameworks for the work of IPBES that are based on or accommodate indigenous and local knowledge systems and worldviews. The workshop is part of the on-going intersessional process leading up to the second session of the Platform's Plenary (IPBES-2), where the outcomes of this workshop will be presented for further consideration.
May 2013: Highlighting the risks posed by climate change to biodiversity, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has released a study that documents climate-induced changes to ecosystems and measures to promote adaptation.
12 April 2013: The 3rd Meeting of Signatories to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Conservation and Management of the Middle-European Population of the Great Bustard (Otis tarda), held in Szarvas, Hungary, adopted a new Action Plan for the period 2012-2016.
15 April 2013: The Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar Convention) and Conservation International (CI) have signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) on the sidelines of the 46th meeting of the Ramsar Standing Committee to provide a framework for future cooperation.
15 April 2013: The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity Business Coalition (TEEB for Business) has released a report on environmental externalities of businesses, titled "Natural Capital at Risk – The Top 100 Externalities of Business.” The report concludes that the top 100 environmental externalities cost the world economy approximately US$7.3 trillion annually, around 13% of global economic output.
18 March 2013: Angola, Namibia and South Africa have signed the Benguela Current Convention, which establishes the first global multilateral Commission to apply the Large Marine Ecosystem (LME) approach to ocean governance. The agreement creates a permanent inter-governmental institution responsible for promoting the long-term conservation and sustainable use of the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME), an ocean area extending from Port Elizabeth in South Africa to the province of Cabinda in the north of Angola.
13 March 2013: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) have released the proceedings of a workshop held in 2012 on "Priority adaptations to climate change for Pacific fisheries and aquaculture: reducing risks and capitalizing on opportunities."
15 March 2013: The sixteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP 16) to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) adopted 55 new listing proposals, saw the first global meeting of wildlife enforcement networks and adopted measures to address wildlife crime.
