Within the framework of the fifteenth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, in which the new global biodiversity framework for the present decade was adopted, ECLAC and the Post-2020 Biodiversity Framework EU Support program of the European Union implemented by Expertise France, held a side event to showcase the lessons learned from 11 positive experiences in Latin America and the Caribbean.
With the adoption of the new Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, countries will focus efforts on its implementation. In this context, ECLAC presented two publications on key tools for the implementation of the framework on the in-depth analysis of 11 cases of good practices in the region to move towards coherent, sustainable and inclusive development models: “Experiences from Latin America and the Caribbean on the integration of biodiversity in the productive, economic and financial sectors” and “Governance approaches and practices in Latin America and the Caribbean for transformative change in favor of biodiversity”, which they make known.
In the side event, Jeannette Sánchez, director of the DRN, spoke about Latin America and the Caribbean having deep structural challenges and numerous middle-income countries, which have to find new ways and models to get out of what ECLAC and the OECD They have called development traps and that a proposal from ECLAC for this is the great boost for sustainability, a proposal that is completely synergistic with the work of the CBD. He added that many of the challenges are common, and that the countries of the region have a great opportunity in South-South collaboration in biodiversity, which can extend beyond the continent and for this reason, the event opened a space for representatives from the African region also shared experiences of mainstreaming biodiversity.
Marcia Tambutti, ECLAC biodiversity specialist, presented both studies and presented the main findings of the cases, the positive lessons and the key challenges of these experiences. In addition, the event had the participation of leading experts at the regional level who presented initiatives developed in the region and addressed key elements to support the implementation of the Framework. Among the guests was the presence of Gisele Didier, deputy director of Research at the Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute, who highlighted the empowerment work carried out on three communities of women in monitoring biodiversity and land management , with productive potential; Marcos Regis da Silva, director of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research, also participated in the event, who highlighted the relevance of networks, collaboration and the creation of capacities and knowledge as enabling conditions for the implementation of the new Framework; Vivienne Solís Rivera from the Network of Marine Areas for Responsible Fishing and Marine Territories of Vida, who focused on the role of the network in maintaining and strengthening responsible fishing practices, highlighting the importance of providing tools and representation in decision-making to the local communities that are the ones that develop concrete actions and creative practice aimed at achieving the objectives of the framework; and René Gómez-García, head of Sustainability, Climate Change and Natural Resources at CAF, who spoke about the BIOCAF 2022/2025 platform and the promotion of projects with an ecosystem approach, participatory and local diversification.
The side event was complemented with the vision of actors from the African region on the initiatives identified in Latin America and the Caribbean and with the examples of the BIODEV2030 Africa project, and the participation of Salah Mhamdi, executive director of the National Chamber of Producers of Cement in Tunisia and Romy Andrianarisa, president of the Business Ethics and Sustainable Development Commission of the Union Malagasy companies in Madagascar. Thus, the event provided an interregional space to help start and promote the dialogue between interregional actors necessary for the implementation of the new global biodiversity framework.
The closure was in charge of Sébastien Treyer, Executive Director, Institut du Développement durable et des Relations Internationales and Hesiquio Benítez Díaz, president of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice of the CBD, who urged those present to advance in the development monitoring indicators that integrate the environmental, social and economic dimension, for which there are already experiences in the region that serve as a basis and inspiration, recognizing that Latin America and the Caribbean can innovate and help other regions.