Ms. Mercy Arhin Mayor of Cape Coast, one of the initiator of the project to plant 60,000 trees, pictured here at the Mayors Conference on Biodiversity in May 2008. The plenary room at the Mayors Conference.

Bonn biodiversity Mayors Conference resonates worldwide

Just a few weeks after the Mayors Conference – Local Action for Biodiversity in Bonn, Germany the impact has already reached Ghana, Africa. The Mayors Conference was held in parallel to the UN Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. Besides the success of officially bringing the important role of cities into the UN convention, cities and regions are taking their own local action for biodiversity.

Cape Coast, Ghana, the capital city of the Central Region, launched an effort to reforest parts of the city and all 17 surrounding districts in the Central Region of Ghana. The effort was launched on 24 June bringing together all mayors of the Central Region, students and others from the community to plant 5000 trees within Cape Coast. Minister Nana Ato Arthur of the Central Region has further directed the surrounding districts to plant 3000 trees each this year. As a partner city to Bonn, Germany, the efforts in Cape Coast resonate that local action for biodiversity is relevent both internationally and locally.

Nearly 60.000 trees will be planted in the Central Region before the rainy season as a step towards improved biodiversity, ecosystem services and community involvment.

More information on ICLEI and Biodiversity here:

www.iclei.org/biodiversity

www.iclei.org/lab