Local Biodiversity Management workshops in South Africa

Local Action for Biodiversity (LAB) is implementing workshops in 3 South African provinces, Western Cape, Gauteng and Mpumalanga, which aim to build local government capacity and raise biodiversity awareness. 2010 being the International Year of Biodiversity (IYB) presents an unprecedented opportunity for local governments across the world to take local action for biodiversity and these workshops will aid local governments to derive maximum benefit from the IYB. The Local Biodiversity Management workshops are being implemented by ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability - for the national South African Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA), with financial support from DEA, as well as the Kingdom of Norway (Norad).

The dates for the workshops are:

Western Cape: 24-26 February

Gauteng: 3-5 March

Mpumalanga: 8-10 March

Towards Aichi/Nagoya: Second Curitiba Declaration on Local Authorities and Biodiversity

At the second Curitiba Meeting on Cities and Biodiversity, 95 delegates representing local, regional and national government, NGOs including ICLEI and organisations, met in Curitiba, Brazil. One of the outcomes of this important meeting was the finalisation of a Declaration by local governments, re-emphasising their commitment to biodiversity. More »

2010 is the Year of Biodiversity

2010 marks the International Year of Biodiversity. At the launch of this initiative, the UN have warned that biodiversity loss is a wake up call for all governments. UN Chief Ban ki Moon stated that "Biodiversity is life. Biodiversity is our life" - a message to all that the earth will suffer if we continue to lose our biodiversity at the rapid rate which we are experiencing at present.

The United Nations proclaimed 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity to conincide with a deadline adopted in 2002 by national governments to achieve a reduction in the rate of loss of biodiversity. To read more about the launch that took place in Berlin in January, see the following press release:

Launch of the International Year of Biodiversity

To read more on the International Year of Biodiversity see the following press releases:

Biodiversity is a wake-up call

International Year of Biodiversity should include agriculture

Biodiversity is not just about saving exotic species

UN marks 2010 as the Year of Biodiversity

2010 is International Year of Biodiversity

Cities and Biodiversity in Curitiba

: Mr Beto Richa - Mayor of Curitiba

ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability – attended the Second Curitiba Meeting on Cities and Biodiversity in Brazil, 6-7 January 2010. Participants at the meeting included the Secretariat of the CBD, ICLEI and its Local Action for Biodiversity programme, UNEP, UN-HABITAT, IUCN’s Countdown 2010, UNESCO, URBIO, academic institutes as well as the cities of Curitiba, Bonn, Nagoya, Montreal and the City State of Singapore. ICLEI Africa's Director, Kobie Brand, launched The Local Government Biodiversity Roadmap. This initiative will advocate for the adoption of a comprehensive Plan of Action for Local Biodiversity Action at the UN CBD COP10, set to take place in Nagoya, Japan in October 2010.

See the following link for more information.

Biodiversity and Climate Change are Inextricably Linked

On the 9 December 2009, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability hosted an afternoon ‘Biodiversity Session’ in the Local Government LOUNGE, in the Bella Centre in Denmark, during the COP15 climate change talks. The event was facilitated by the ICLEI Africa Secretariat’s Director, Kobie Brand. She announced ICLEI’s intent to launch a new global mobilisation initiative, ‘The Local Government Biodiversity Roadmap’. More »

Thomas Elmqvist, from the Stockholm Resilience Centre, has recently indicated his support for the Biodiversity Roadmap. During the Biodiversity Sessions in the Local Government Climate Lounge, he stated that "now is the time for connection between UN conventions to be made and to bring biodiversity meaningfully into the discussion on climate change". For more, click on the link to the website.

An exciting new addition to LAB

Jerusalem is the newest local government to join the second phase of the LAB programme. They are the second local government in the Middle East to join LAB; the first was Abu Dhabi (UAE). Both of these cities are very strategic in terms of biodiversity and we are looking forward to welcoming many other participants from this region. The Jerusalem signing ceremony took place last week and the LAB team also conducted successful workshops with the local council members to share information about local biodiversity and the LAB Initiative. Jerusalem joins other exemplary local governments; namely Abu Dhabi, Capital of the United Arab Emirates, Bergrivier Local Municipality and Cape Winelands District Municipality, South Africa, and Brussels Capital Region, Belgium. The LAB team is really excited to welcome all the new participants to the expanding LAB network.