Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
Message It gives me great pleasure to inform all concerned that India is going to be host to a mega international event in the field of Biodiversity. The XI Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity will be held in India from 1-19 October, 2012 at Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. India is rich in biodiversity and associated traditional knowledge which has been gathered from times immemorial. With just 2.4% of the worlds land area, 18% of the global human population as well as a large livestock population, India yet accounts for nearly 7% of all globally recorded species. In the last few decades biodiversity has globally come under increasing pressure on account of factors such as habitat fragmentation, development imperatives, unsustainable consumption pattern and, more recently, global warming. The global concern over loss of biodiversity led to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 1992. The Conference of the Parties is the governing body of the Convention that advances implementation of the Convention through the decisions it takes at its biennial meetings. Since 1992, ten meetings of the Conference of the Parties (CoP) to the CBD have been held. The eleventh will now be hosted by India from 1-19 October, 2012 at Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. CoP-11 is expected to be the largest such conference to be held in the country, with participation of approximately 8000 delegates from all around the world. CoP-11 would provide a unique platform to display, promote, interact, learn and network from each others experiences and knowledge relating to biodiversity. Please join us and support the various initiatives to make the CBD CoP-11 a memorable experience for the thousands of delegates.
(Jayanthi Natarajan)
What is 'Biodiversity'?
Biological diversity, or 'biodiversity', encompasses the variety of all life on earth. Biodiversity manifests itself at three levels: 'species' diversity which refers to the numbers and kinds of living organisms; 'genetic' diversity which refers to genetic variation within species; and 'ecosystem' diversity which denotes the variety of habitats, biological communities and ecological processes.
What is species ?
We see a large variety and number of individual organisms. They do not exist in isolation and can easily be recognized as belonging to a kind; rats, cats, humans, mango trees. A geographically localized group of individuals of the same kind at a particular time represents a Population. The sum of all the populations of the same kind forms a species. A species is, thus, defined as a group of closely related, structurally and functionally similar organisms which interbreed with one another in nature, but not with organisms of other groups. Species are the building blocks of biodiversity and ecosystems. Species have significant aesthetic, cultural, spiritual and educational values. Species form the very foundations of our livelihoods, by providing us with what are known as goods and services. These range from physical goods including food, fuel, clothes and medicine, to essential services such as the purification of water and air, pollination and the prevention of soil erosion. Species also provide an invaluable resource for economic activities including fisheries, forestry and tourism. With continuing decline of species, nature's ability to provide us with these vital goods and services becomes severely diminished, and the livelihoods of billions of people across the globe are left in jeopardy as a result.
What is an ecosystem ?
A living community cannot live in isolation. It lives in an environment which supplies its material and energy requirements and provides other living conditions. The living community, together with the physical environment forms an interacting system called the Ecosystem. An ecosystem can be natural or artificial, temporary or permanent. A large grassland or a forest, a small tract in a forest or a single log, an edge of a pond, a village, an aquarium or a manned spaceship can all be regarded as ecosystem. An ecosystem can thus be defined as a functional unit of nature, where living organisms interact among themselves and also with the surrounding physical environment.
3 2
3
For India, conservation of its biodiversity is crucial not only because it provides several goods and services necessary for human survival, but also because it is directly linked with providing livelihoods to and improving socio-economic conditions of millions of our people, thereby contributing to sustainable development and poverty alleviation. In the last few decades biodiversity has globally come under increasing pressure on account of factors such as habitat fragmentation, development imperatives, unsustainable consumption pattern and, more recently, global warming. Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, a scientific assessment carried out during 2001-2005 on the status of world's biodiversity, found that changes and decline in biodiversity due to human activities have taken place more rapidly in the last fifty years than at any time in human history.
to the CBD was adopted. The Protocol has been signed by 92 countries, and as on date six countries have ratified it. The Protocol will enter into force 90 days after the fiftieth ratification.
Since 1992, ten meetings of the Conference of the Parties (CoP) to the CBD have been held (may see table below).
CoP CoP -1 CoP -2 CoP -3 CoP -4 CoP -5 CoP -6 CoP -7 CoP -8 CoP -9 CoP -10 Period Nov-Dec 1994 Nov 1995 Nov 1996 May 1998 May 2000 April 2002 Feb 2004 May 2006 May 2008 Oct 2010 Place, Country Nassau, Bahamas Jakarta, Indonesia Buenos Aires, Argentina Bratislava, Slovakia Nairobi, Kenya The Hague, Netherlands Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Curitiba, Brazil Bonn, Germany Nagoya, Japan Region Latin America & Caribbean Asia & Pacific Latin America & Caribbean Central & Eastern Europe Africa Western Europe & Others Asia & Pacific Latin America & Caribbean Western Europe & Others Asia & Pacific
The XI meeting of CoP will be hosted by India at Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh from October 1 to 19, 2012.
5
Ministers/Vice-Ministers in the last three days of the high level segment of CoP; interactive fair/exhibition with 60 stalls; and more than 400 side events on biodiversity. CoP-11 being hosted by India will be held in the 40th anniversary year of Stockholm Conference held in 1972, the 20th anniversary year of Rio Earth Summit held in 1992, and 10th anniversary year of World Sustainable Summit held in 2002. Coming soon after the Rio+20 meeting, this would also be the first CoP in the UN Decade on Biodiversity 2011-2020.
6
As one of the fastest growing economies with an increasing international recognition of India's global role and responsibilities, India is a strong contender for Permanent Membership of UN Security Council. India is already recognized as a leader of the developing world in environmental multilateral forums such as United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), CBD, United Nations Convention to Combat Decertification (UNCCD), Stockholm Convention, United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF), and Global Environment Facility (GEF). Hosting CoP-11 will facilitate the process of India emerging as a leading voice in biodiversity conservation while defining and driving the global agenda for the next few years as the 'Incoming Presidency', 'Presidency' and 'Outgoing Presidency'.
7
The venue for CoP-11 and CoP/MoP-6 is Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC), a purpose-built facility with state-of-the art IT infrastructure, design and telecommunications. Exhibitions and a few other events of CoP-11 will be organised at Hyderabad International Trade Expositions Ltd (HITEX) which is adjacent to HICC.
w w
8
Achieving the Aichi Biodiversity Targets: Progress at National Level and Resource Mobilization Biodiversity for sustainable development, livelihoods, poverty reduction and food security Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Implementation of Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing