17 March 2006 - International
— Elvis had it right in 1968 when he sang
the line, 'a little less conversation, a
little more action.' Welcome to the Convention
on Biological Diversity (CBD), due to kick-off
next week in Brazil. In the 14 years since
it began at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992,
the achievements of the CBD have been few.
Every word, every comma, every full stop
has to be negotiated, debated and then renegotiated
by over 180 countries.
In 2002 at the World Summit on Sustainability
Development in South Africa, the world promised
to significantly reduce the rate of biodiversity
loss by 2010 on land and 2012 in the ocean.
Yet here we are in 2006, just 4 years away
from that deadline, and they haven't even
started the 'Programme of Work', the main
vehicle for the creation of a global network
of protected areas Unfortunately, the world's
plants and animals are running out of time.
If reducing the rate of biodiversity loss
was their promise in 2002, then 2006 is
a wake up call with life on the planet continuing
to be consigned to the history books. Extinctions
are now running at 1,000 times normal levels
and will increase up to 10,000 times normal
levels by 2050 if urgent action is not taken.
Whilst the delegates at the CBD slowly
negotiate, we are working to stop biodiversity
loss right now. Our ship the 'Esperanza'
is in the Atlantic working to expose the
pirate fishing fleets that operate without
sanction across the world's oceans. Teams
of activists are also working in the heart
of the Amazon to stop the rainforest being
destroyed to grow agricultural products,
such as soya.
On the other side of the planet, volunteers
from around the world are protecting the
rainforests of Papua New Guinea. Working
from the Global Forest Rescue Station, they
are helping traditional landowners and eco-forestry
experts establish the rights of traditional
landowners.
The CBD needs to speed up its work to protect
life on earth. The delegates need to agree
without delay to:
- Create a global network of protected
areas on land and in the ocean.
- Properly fund the protection of life
on earth and if additional resources can
be found, help other countries in the protection
of life on earth.
- Stop bottom trawling on the high seas
and vote in favour of a moratorium on high
seas bottom trawling in the United Nations
General Assembly.
- Stop illegal logging and the trade in
illegal timber products.
- Share the wealth created from biological
products with communities from which they
came.
- Ensure companies are held to the highest
international standard of practice and not
privatise natural resources
