My Daily Inquirer

Final Meeting on Whether to Establish an International Body to Address Decline of World's Nature-Based Assets

Governments Gather in Busan, Republic of Korea for Third Meeting on an Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

Busan, 7-11 June 2010 -The past 50 years have witnessed unprecedented economic growth which has made many people in the world richer and lifted millions out of poverty.

But equally it has led to an accelerating decline of the biodiversity and the ecosystems that underpin all life on Earth?ecosystems include forests and freshwaters to soils, coral reefs and even the atmosphere.

Currently more than 65 per cent of ecosystems and their multi-trillion dollar services are classed as degraded. According to some estimates, the world is witnessing a sixth wave of extinctions of animals, plants and other organisms which are the building blocks of ecosystems.

Between 7 and 11 June, governments, researchers and experts will meet in Busan, Republic of Korea to agree whether to establish an Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES).

The meeting comes two days after the UN's World Environment Day under the theme Many Species, One Planet, One Future and half way through the UN's International Year of Biodiversity.

Supporters of a new such Platform believe it could bridge the crucial gap between scientists and policy-makers: thus catalyzing a more comprehensive local and global response to the decline of biodiversity and ecosystems.

Such a Platform could also assist in plugging knowledge gaps. For example science still does not know how many species need to disappear from an ecosystem before the system collapses.

An IPBES could also serve as an early warning mechanism. Some experts are convinced that many scientific discoveries, from the identification of new lower life forms to the fast disappearance of others, can often remain within the corridors of research institutes and universities for many years before they reach the wider world

By that time is may be too late to act to either conserve or protect the species concerned whereas early warning might have put the species on the political radar giving it a better chance.

Meanwhile controversial issues can often be discussed in research papers for several decades before hitting the headlines.

Some kind of scientifically credible body, able to give an authoritative and peer reviewed early warning of such issues, could catalyze debate and an improved policy response long before such developments become polarized in terms of public opinion.

The decision to hold this third and final meeting was made at the United Nations Environment Programme's (UNEP) Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum held earlier this year in Bali, Indonesia. Media are welcome to attend the event.

For More Information Please Contact:

Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson/ Head of Media, on Tel: +254 7623084 /Mobile +254 (0)733632755, E-mail: nick.nuttall@unep.org

Or Isabelle Pierrard, Communication Specialist, UNEP's Division of Environmental Policy Implementation (DEPI), on Mobile. +254 (0)727 529 557, E-mail: isabelle.pierrard@unep.org

The third and final intergovernmental and multi-stakeholder meeting on IPBES will be held at the Busan Exhibition and Conference Center in Busan, Republic of Korea, from 7-11 June 2010.

An opening Press Conference is scheduled on 7 June, Room 202 at the Busan Exhibition and Conference Center (BEXCO). The time of the Press Conference is yet to be confirmed.

Journalists seeking accreditation should contact Ji-hyun MIN (Program Officer, Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Korea) on Tel: +82-2-509-7910/Mobile: +82-10-9213-2974, E-mail: no1bride@korea.kr.

Source: http://unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=624&ArticleID=6586&l=en&t=long

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Christiana Figueres Appointed New UN Climate Convention Executive Secretary

(Bonn, 17 May 2010) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Christiana Figueres as the new Executive Secretary of the United Nations Climate Change Secretariat based in Bonn, Germany. The appointment was endorsed by the Bureau of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on Monday.

In announcing her appointment the UN Secretary-General said: "Ms. Figueres is an international leader on strategies to address global climate change and brings to this position a passion for the issue, deep knowledge of the stakeholders and valuable hands-on experience with the public sector, non-profit sector and private sector."

Ms. Figueres' leadership at the helm of the UNFCCC comes at a crucial time in global efforts to take effective action on climate change.

"I am honored by the designation of the Secretary General and I am thankful to the members of the UNFCCC Bureau for their vote of confidence. Most of all, I am humbled by the opportunity of the challenging task at hand," said Ms. Figueres.

"As I take on my new responsibilities at the helm of the secretariat, I will have two immediate priorities: to work with the Secretary General to strengthen trust in the process, and to support the Danish and Mexican COP Presidencies as well as all other Parties in the preparation of a successful COP16 in Cancun," she added.

Ms Figueres has been a member of the Costa Rican negotiating team since 1995. She represented Latin America and the Caribbean on the Executive Board of the Clean Development Mechanism in 2007, and was then elected Vice President of the Conference of the Parties 2008-2009.

She has served as Director of International Cooperation in the Ministry of Planning in Costa Rica, and as Chief of Staff to the Minister of Agriculture. She was also the Director of Renewable Energy in the Americas (REIA) and is founder of the Center for Sustainable Development of the Americas (CSDA).

Outgoing UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer said: "I have known Christiana Figueres for many years and can testify to her deep commitment and work to establish the robust and effective international climate regime that is the only way for all nations to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. She is familiar with the different interests a successful outcome of negotiations must address and can help stakeholders to find common ground. I wish her every success."

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in turn commended Yvo de Boer:"I am grateful for his dedicated services and tireless efforts on behalf of the climate change agenda," he said.

Ms. Figueres, 53, holds a Masters Degree in Anthropology from the London School of Economics, and a certificate in Organizational Development from Georgetown University.

About the UNFCCC

With 194 Parties, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has near universal membership and is the parent treaty of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. The Kyoto Protocol has been ratified by 190 of the UNFCCC Parties. Under the Protocol, 37 States, consisting of highly industrialized countries and countries undergoing the process of transition to a market economy, have legally binding emission limitation and reduction commitments. The ultimate objective of both treaties is to stabilize

Greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that will prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system.

Source: UNEP

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New Vision Required to Stave Off Dramatic Biodiversity Loss, Says UN Report

Nairobi, 10 May 2010 - Natural systems that support economies, lives and livelihoods across the planet are at risk of rapid degradation and collapse unless there is swift, radical and creative action to conserve and sustainably use the variety of life on Earth.

This is one principal conclusion of a major new assessment of the current state of biodiversity and the implications of its continued loss for human well-being.

The third edition of Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO-3), produced by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), confirms that the world has failed to meet its target to achieve a significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010.

The report is based on scientific assessments, national reports submitted by governments and a study on future scenarios for biodiversity. Subject to an extensive independent scientific review process, the publication of GBO-3 is one of the principal milestones of the UN's International Year of Biodiversity.

The Outlook will be a key input into discussions by world leaders and Heads of State at a special high level segment of the United Nations General Assembly on 22 September. Its conclusions will also be central to the negotiations by world governments at the Nagoya Biodiversity Summit in October.

The Outlook warns that massive further loss of biodiversity is becoming increasingly likely, and with it, a severe reduction of many essential services to human societies as several "tipping points" are approached, in which ecosystems shift to alternative, less productive states from which it may be difficult or impossible to recover.

Potential tipping points analyzed for GBO-3 include:

# The dieback of large areas of the Amazon forest, due to the interactions of climate change, deforestation and fires, with consequences for the global climate, regional rainfall and widespread species extinctions.

# The shift of many freshwater lakes and other inland water bodies to eutrophic or algae-dominated states, caused by the buildup of nutrients and leading to widespread fish kills and loss of recreational amenities.

# Multiple collapses of coral reef ecosystems, due to a combination of ocean acidification, warmer water leading to bleaching, overfishing and nutrient pollution; and threatening the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of species directly dependent on coral reef resources.

The Outlook argues, however, that such outcomes are avoidable if effective and coordinated action is taken to reduce the multiple pressures being imposed on biodiversity. For example, urgent action is needed to reduce land-based pollution and destructive fishing practices that weaken coral reefs, and make them more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and ocean acidification.

The document notes that the linked challenges of biodiversity loss and climate change must be addressed by policymakers with equal priority and in close co-ordination, if the most severe impacts of each are to be avoided. Conserving biodiversity and the ecosystems it underpins can help to store more carbon, reducing further build-up of greenhouse gases; and people will be better able to adapt to unavoidable climate change if ecosystems are made more resilient with the easing of other pressures.

The Outlook outlines a possible new strategy for reducing biodiversity loss, learning the lessons from the failure to meet the 2010 target. It includes addressing the underlying causes or indirect drivers of biodiversity loss, such as patterns of consumption, the impacts of increased trade and demographic change. Ending harmful subsidies would also be an important step.

GBO-3 concludes that we can no longer see the continued loss of biodiversity as an issue separate from the core concerns of society. Realizing objectives such as tackling poverty and improving the health, wealth and security of present and future generations will be greatly strengthened if we finally give biodiversity the priority it deserves.

The Outlook points out that for a fraction of the money summoned up instantly by the world's governments in 2008-9 to avoid economic meltdown, we can avoid a much more serious and fundamental breakdown in the Earth's life support systems

In his foreword to GBO-3, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon writes: "To tackle the root causes of biodiversity loss, we must give it higher priority in all areas of decision-making and in all economic sectors."

"As this third Global Biodiversity Outlook makes clear, conserving biodiversity cannot be an afterthought once other objectives are addressed - it is the foundation on which many of these objectives are built."

"We need a new vision for biological diversity for a healthy planet and a sustainable future for humankind."

UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, Achim Steiner, adds that there have been key economic reasons why the 2010 biodiversity targets were not met.

"Many economies remain blind to the huge value of the diversity of animals, plants and other life-forms and their role in healthy and functioning ecosystems from forests and freshwaters to soils, oceans and even the atmosphere," observes Mr. Steiner.

"Many countries are beginning to factor natural capital into some areas of economic and social life with important returns, but this needs rapid and sustained scaling-up."

"Humanity has fabricated the illusion that somehow we can get by without biodiversity or that it is somehow peripheral to our contemporary world: the truth is we need it more than ever on a planet of six billion heading to over nine billion people by 2050."

The Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Ahmed Djoghlaf, says: "The news is not good. We continue to lose biodiversity at a rate never before seen in history - extinction rates may be up to 1,000 times higher than the historical background rate."

"The assessment of the state of the world's biodiversity in 2010, as contained in GBO-3 based on the latest indicators, over 110 national reports submitted to the Convention Secretariat, and scenarios for the 21st Century should serve as a wake-up call for humanity. Business as usual is no longer an option if we are to avoid irreversible damage to the life-support systems of our planet."

"The Convention's new Strategic Plan, to be adopted at the 2010 Nagoya Biodiversity Summit must tackle the underlying causes of biodiversity loss. The linked challenges of biodiversity loss and climate change must be addressed with equal priority and close cooperation. Joint action is needed to implement the Conventions on Biodiversity, Climate Change and to Combat Desertification - the three conventions born of the 1992 Rio Conference. The Rio+20 Summit offers an opportunity to adopt a workplan to achieve this."

KEY FINDINGS:

Biodiversity in 2010

GBO-3 uses multiple lines of evidence to demonstrate that the target set by world governments in 2002, "to achieve by 2010 a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss at the global, regional and national level" , has not been met. Based on a special analysis of biodiversity indicators carried out by a panel of scientists, as well as peer-reviewed scientific literature and reports from national governments to the CBD, key findings include:

# None of the twenty-one subsidiary targets accompanying the overall 2010 biodiversity target can be said definitively to have been achieved globally, although some have been partially or locally achieved. Ten of fifteen headline indicators developed by the CBD show trends unfavorable for biodiversity.

# No government claims to have completely met the 2010 biodiversity target at the national level, and around one-fifth state explicitly that it has not been met.

# Species that have been assessed for extinction risk are on average moving closer to extinction, with amphibians facing the greatest risk and coral species deteriorating most rapidly.

# The abundance of vertebrate species, based on assessed populations, fell by nearly one-third on average between 1970 and 2006, and continues to fall globally, with especially severe declines in the tropics and among freshwater species.

# Natural habitats in most parts of the world continue to decline in extent and integrity, notably freshwater wetlands, sea-ice habitats, salt marshes, coral reefs, seagrass beds and shellfish reefs; although there has been significant progress in slowing the rate of loss of tropical forests and mangroves, in some regions.

# Crop and livestock genetic diversity continues to decline in agricultural systems. For example, more than sixty breeds of livestock are reported to have become extinct since 2000.

# The five principal pressures directly driving biodiversity loss (habitat change, over-exploitation, pollution, invasive alien species and climate change) are either constant or increasing in intensity.

# There has been significant progress in the increase of protected areas both on land and in coastal waters. However, 44% of terrestrial eco-regions (areas with a large proportion of shared species and habitat types), and 82% of marine eco-regions, fall below the target of 10% protection. The majority of sites judged to be of special importance to biodiversity also fall outside protected areas.

Biodiversity Futures for the 21st Century

Scientists from a wide range of disciplines came together as part of the preparation of GBO-3 to identify possible future outcomes for biodiversity during the current century, based on observed trends, models and experiments. Their principal conclusions include:

# Projections of the impact of global change on biodiversity show continuing and often accelerating species extinctions, loss of natural habitat, and changes in the distribution and abundance of species, species groups and biomes over the 21st Century.

# There is a high risk of dramatic biodiversity loss and accompanying degradation of a broad range of ecosystem services if the Earth system is pushed beyond certain thresholds or tipping points.

# Earlier assessments have underestimated the potential severity of biodiversity loss based on plausible scenarios, because the impacts of passing tipping points or thresholds of ecosystem change have not previously been taken into account.

# There are greateropportunities than identified in earlier assessments to address the biodiversity crisis while contributing to other social objectives; for example, by reducing the scale of climate change without large-scale deployment of biofuels and accompanying loss of natural habitats.

# Biodiversity and ecosystem changes could be prevented, significantly reduced or even reversed if strong action is applied urgently, comprehensively and appropriately, at international, national and local levels.

Towards a strategy for reducing biodiversity loss

GBO-3 sets out a number of elements that could be considered in a future strategy to reduce biodiversity loss, and avoid the worst impacts of the scenarios analyzed in the Outlook. It is likely to form the basis of discussion of the strategic plan currently being considered for the next decade of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and due to be agreed at the 10th meeting of the Conference of Parties to the CBD in Nagoya, Japan, in October 2010. The elements include:

# Continued and intensified direct intervention to reduce loss of biodiversity, for example through expanding and strengthening protected areas, and programmes targeted at vulnerable species and habitats;

# Continued and intensified measures to reduce the direct pressures on biodiversity, such as preventing nutrient pollution, cutting off the pathways for introduction alien invasive species, and introducing more sustainable practices in fisheries, forestry and agriculture;

# Much greater efficiency in the use of land, energy, fresh water and materials to meet growing demand from a rising and more prosperous population;

# Use of market incentives, and avoidance of perverse subsidies, to minimize unsustainable resource use and wasteful consumption;

# Strategic planning to reconcile development with the conservation of biodiversity and the maintenance of the multiple services provided by the ecosystems it underpins;

# Restoration of ecosystems to safeguard essential services to human societies, while recognizing that protecting existing ecosystems is generally much more cost-effective than allowing them to degrade in the first place;

# Ensuring that the benefits arising from the use of and access to genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, for example through the development of drugs and cosmetics, are equitably shared with the countries and cultures from which they are obtained;

# Communication, education and awareness-raising to ensure that as far as possible, everyone understands the value of biodiversity and what steps they can take to protect it, including through changes in personal consumption and behavior.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. Global Biodiversity Outlook 3 (GBO-3) , like its two predecessors published in four-yearly intervals since 2002, results from a decision of the Conference of Parties to the CBD [see note 2 below]. It is the product of close collaboration between the Secretariat of the CBD and the United Nations Environment Programme's World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC).

The Outlook has been produced according to a transparent, rigorous process of review. Two separate drafts were made available for review via the Internet during 2009, and comments from some 200 reviewers were considered. The whole production has been supervised by an Advisory Group, and the second draft was subjected to scientific review by a panel comprising leading scientists from governments, inter-governmental bodies and non-governmental organizations. The principal sources on which GBO-3 is based include:

# An analysis of the current status and trends of biodiversity, carried out by the Biodiversity Indicators Partnership, a network of organizations coordinated by UNEP-WCMC;

# A study of scenarios and models regarding biodiversity in the 21st Century, involving a wide range of scientists under the auspices of the Diversitas network and UNEP-WCMC. This study, "Biodiversity Scenarios: Projections of 21st Century Change in Biodiversity and Associated Ecosystem Services" has also been launched on 10 May and is available at www.cbd.int/gbo3;

# Some 500 peer-reviewed scientific journal articles and assessments from inter-governmental and non-governmental bodies reviewed for the Outlook;

110 national reports on biodiversity submitted by governments to the CBD.

The publication of GBO-3 was enabled by financial contributions from Canada, the European Union, Germany, Japan, Spain and the United Kingdom, as well as UNEP.

2. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) opened for signature at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, and entered into force in December 1993. The CBD is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and the equitable sharing of the benefits from utilization of genetic resources. With 193 Parties, the Convention has near universal participation among countries committed to preserving life on Earth. The Convention seeks to address all threats to biodiversity and ecosystem services, including threats from climate change, through scientific assessments, the development of tools, incentives and processes, the transfer of technologies and good practices and the full and active involvement of relevant stakeholders including indigenous and local communities, youth, NGOs, women and the business community. The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety a supplementary treaty to the Convention seeks to protect biological diversity from the potential risks posed by living modified organisms resulting from modern biotechnology. To date, 157 countries and the European Community are party to the Protocol. The Secretariat of the Convention and its Cartagena Protocol is located in Montreal. www.cbd.int/

3. 2010 International Year of Biodiversity The United Nations declared 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity (IYB) to raise awareness about the crucial importance of biodiversity, to communicate the human costs of biodiversity loss, and to engage people, particularly youth, throughout the world in the fight to protect all life on Earth. Initiatives will be organized throughout the year to disseminate information, promote the protection of biodiversity and encourage countries, organizations, and individuals to take direct action to reduce biodiversity loss. The focal point for the year is the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity. www.cbd.int/2010/welcome/

For more information please contact:

# David Ainsworth, CBD, +1 514 833 0196 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              +1 514 833 0196      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              +1 514 833 0196      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting +1 514 833 0196 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or at david.ainsworth@cbd.int

# Johan Hedlund, CBD, +1 514 287 6670 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting +1 514 287 6670 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or johan.hedlund@cbd.int

# Nick Nuttall, UNEP, +41 795965737 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting +41 795965737 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or nick.nuttall@unep.org

# Shereen Zorba, UNEP, +254 713601259 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting +254 713601259 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or shereen.zorba@unep.org

LINKS TO ADDITIONAL MATERIALS:

Press release in other languages:

French version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/fr.doc

Russian version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/ru.doc

Chinese version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/ch.doc

Arabic version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/ar.doc

Spanish version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/sp.doc

Full report: Global Biodiversity Outlook-3 in six languages:

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-ar.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-en.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-es.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-fr.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-ru.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-ar.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-zh.pdf

Executive Summary in English: http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-Summary-final-en.pdf

Global Biodiversity Outlook-3 Regional Factsheets:

http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/Africa.pdf

http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/LatinAmerica.pdf

http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/AsiaPacific.pdf

http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/WestAsia.pdf

Download the Video News Release (VNR) in broadcast standard or web standard: http://eurovision.net/worldlink/front/view/home.php

MP4 file of the VNR: http://idisk.mac.com/mabelle-Public/David/VNR GOV FINAL.mp4

Information and links regarding the VNRs and B-roll: http://web.me.com/dcurchod/dccdevbiodiv10/GLOBAL_BIODIVERSITY.html

GBO-3 graphics: www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-graphs.zi

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Aichi-Nagoya International E-Conference on the Post 2010 Biodiversity Target (ANIEC 2010)

The Aichi-Nagoya International E-Conference on the post 2010 Biodiversity Target (ANIEC 2010) has been created to gather opinion from broad and diverse groups of stakeholders on “how” and “what” actions should be taken in the short and medium term after 2010.

The ANIEC 2010 represents a “mega” consultation process that utilizes internet communication technology to seek views and provide a framework for an electronic debate of the civil society prior to a meeting of a Conference of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Through the CBD Clearing House, it will involve government and non-government organizations, indigenous and local communities, women, youth, scientific and expert networks, academia, business networks, local communities, and other interested segments and groups in an open dialogue. The outputs of the resulting discussion will be summarized and presented to the high level segment of the UN General Assembly in New York in September. As well, a side event will be organized during COP 10 by the president to present the results of the e-conference for the delegates.

Source: CBD

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New UNEP Launch on the Future of the Clean-Tech Revolution

11 May 2010 - Global demand for metals like copper and aluminum has doubled in the past 20 years. Unless recycling rates are intensified for these and other critical metals, they will be unavailable for future use. This is among the findings of two new UN reports entitled Metals Recycling Rates and Metals in Society.


Global demand for metals, from common ones such as iron and copper to specialty, high-tech and rare earth metals, has been rising sharply over recent years and will continue to climb into the foreseeable future.


Apart from some exceptions, recycling rates are modest or low and in some cases almost non-existent. This has implications for the environment but perhaps even more importantly for the future growth of high-tech components, clean technologies and a global transition to a Green Economy.


The International Panel on Sustainable Resource Management, hosted by UNEP, will today present startling findings on the amount of metals 'above ground' as opposed those still in the ground, alongside estimated recycling rates for dozens of metals.


It will also underline the risks to the environment and the economy from current unsustainable patterns, alongside opportunities if recycling rates are massively stepped up.


The findings feed into intergovernmental discussions this week in New York at the UN's Commission on Sustainable Development and next week's preparatory consultations on the Rio+20 summit in Brazil in 2012.


The reports will be launched by Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director, and Thomas Graedel, Professor of Industrial Ecology of Yale University at a press conference on 13 May 2010 at 12:30 pm (EST) at the United Nations Press Centre (Dag Hammarskjold Library Auditorium) in New York.


For More Information and to Attend the Press Conference Please Contact:

Nick Nuttall, Spokesperson/Head of Media, on Nick.Nuttall@unep.org, Tel: Mobile +254 (0)733632755 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              +254 (0)733632755      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              +254 (0)733632755      end_of_the_skype_highlighting or when traveling +41 79 596 5737


Jim Sniffen, UNEP Information Officer in New York, on Tel: +1-212-963-8094 or +1-917-742-2218, sniffenj@un.org.


Information on UN Media Accreditation can be found at www.un.org/media/accreditation/

Source: UNEP

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New Vision Required to Stave Off Dramatic Biodiversity Loss, Says UN Report

Nairobi, 10 May 2010 - Natural systems that support economies, lives and livelihoods across the planet are at risk of rapid degradation and collapse unless there is swift, radical and creative action to conserve and sustainably use the variety of life on Earth.


This is one principal conclusion of a major new assessment of the current state of biodiversity and the implications of its continued loss for human well-being.


The third edition of Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO-3), produced by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), confirms that the world has failed to meet its target to achieve a significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010.


The report is based on scientific assessments, national reports submitted by governments and a study on future scenarios for biodiversity. Subject to an extensive independent scientific review process, the publication of GBO-3 is one of the principal milestones of the UN's International Year of Biodiversity.


The Outlook will be a key input into discussions by world leaders and Heads of State at a special high level segment of the United Nations General Assembly on 22 September. Its conclusions will also be central to the negotiations by world governments at the Nagoya Biodiversity Summit in October.


The Outlook warns that massive further loss of biodiversity is becoming increasingly likely, and with it, a severe reduction of many essential services to human societies as several "tipping points" are approached, in which ecosystems shift to alternative, less productive states from which it may be difficult or impossible to recover.


Potential tipping points analyzed for GBO-3 include:



The dieback of large areas of the Amazon forest, due to the interactions of climate change, deforestation and fires, with consequences for the global climate, regional rainfall and widespread species extinctions.

The shift of many freshwater lakes and other inland water bodies to eutrophic or algae-dominated states, caused by the buildup of nutrients and leading to widespread fish kills and loss of recreational amenities.

Multiple collapses of coral reef ecosystems, due to a combination of ocean acidification, warmer water leading to bleaching, overfishing and nutrient pollution; and threatening the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of species directly dependent on coral reef resources.

The Outlook argues, however, that such outcomes are avoidable if effective and coordinated action is taken to reduce the multiple pressures being imposed on biodiversity. For example, urgent action is needed to reduce land-based pollution and destructive fishing practices that weaken coral reefs, and make them more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and ocean acidification.


The document notes that the linked challenges of biodiversity loss and climate change must be addressed by policymakers with equal priority and in close co-ordination, if the most severe impacts of each are to be avoided. Conserving biodiversity and the ecosystems it underpins can help to store more carbon, reducing further build-up of greenhouse gases; and people will be better able to adapt to unavoidable climate change if ecosystems are made more resilient with the easing of other pressures.


The Outlook outlines a possible new strategy for reducing biodiversity loss, learning the lessons from the failure to meet the 2010 target. It includes addressing the underlying causes or indirect drivers of biodiversity loss, such as patterns of consumption, the impacts of increased trade and demographic change. Ending harmful subsidies would also be an important step.


GBO-3 concludes that we can no longer see the continued loss of biodiversity as an issue separate from the core concerns of society. Realizing objectives such as tackling poverty and improving the health, wealth and security of present and future generations will be greatly strengthened if we finally give biodiversity the priority it deserves.


The Outlook points out that for a fraction of the money summoned up instantly by the world's governments in 2008-9 to avoid economic meltdown, we can avoid a much more serious and fundamental breakdown in the Earth's life support systems


In his foreword to GBO-3, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon writes: "To tackle the root causes of biodiversity loss, we must give it higher priority in all areas of decision-making and in all economic sectors."


"As this third Global Biodiversity Outlook makes clear, conserving biodiversity cannot be an afterthought once other objectives are addressed - it is the foundation on which many of these objectives are built."


"We need a new vision for biological diversity for a healthy planet and a sustainable future for humankind."


UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, Achim Steiner, adds that there have been key economic reasons why the 2010 biodiversity targets were not met.


"Many economies remain blind to the huge value of the diversity of animals, plants and other life-forms and their role in healthy and functioning ecosystems from forests and freshwaters to soils, oceans and even the atmosphere," observes Mr. Steiner.


"Many countries are beginning to factor natural capital into some areas of economic and social life with important returns, but this needs rapid and sustained scaling-up."


"Humanity has fabricated the illusion that somehow we can get by without biodiversity or that it is somehow peripheral to our contemporary world: the truth is we need it more than ever on a planet of six billion heading to over nine billion people by 2050."


The Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Ahmed Djoghlaf, says: "The news is not good. We continue to lose biodiversity at a rate never before seen in history - extinction rates may be up to 1,000 times higher than the historical background rate."


"The assessment of the state of the world's biodiversity in 2010, as contained in GBO-3 based on the latest indicators, over 110 national reports submitted to the Convention Secretariat, and scenarios for the 21st Century should serve as a wake-up call for humanity. Business as usual is no longer an option if we are to avoid irreversible damage to the life-support systems of our planet."


"The Convention's new Strategic Plan, to be adopted at the 2010 Nagoya Biodiversity Summit must tackle the underlying causes of biodiversity loss. The linked challenges of biodiversity loss and climate change must be addressed with equal priority and close cooperation. Joint action is needed to implement the Conventions on Biodiversity, Climate Change and to Combat Desertification - the three conventions born of the 1992 Rio Conference. The Rio+20 Summit offers an opportunity to adopt a workplan to achieve this."


KEY FINDINGS:


Biodiversity in 2010


GBO-3 uses multiple lines of evidence to demonstrate that the target set by world governments in 2002, "to achieve by 2010 a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss at the global, regional and national level" , has not been met. Based on a special analysis of biodiversity indicators carried out by a panel of scientists, as well as peer-reviewed scientific literature and reports from national governments to the CBD, key findings include:



None of the twenty-one subsidiary targets accompanying the overall 2010 biodiversity target can be said definitively to have been achieved globally, although some have been partially or locally achieved. Ten of fifteen headline indicators developed by the CBD show trends unfavorable for biodiversity.

No government claims to have completely met the 2010 biodiversity target at the national level, and around one-fifth state explicitly that it has not been met.

Species that have been assessed for extinction risk are on average moving closer to extinction, with amphibians facing the greatest risk and coral species deteriorating most rapidly.

The abundance of vertebrate species, based on assessed populations, fell by nearly one-third on average between 1970 and 2006, and continues to fall globally, with especially severe declines in the tropics and among freshwater species.

Natural habitats in most parts of the world continue to decline in extent and integrity, notably freshwater wetlands, sea-ice habitats, salt marshes, coral reefs, seagrass beds and shellfish reefs; although there has been significant progress in slowing the rate of loss of tropical forests and mangroves, in some regions.

Crop and livestock genetic diversity continues to decline in agricultural systems. For example, more than sixty breeds of livestock are reported to have become extinct since 2000.

The five principal pressures directly driving biodiversity loss (habitat change, over-exploitation, pollution, invasive alien species and climate change) are either constant or increasing in intensity.

There has been significant progress in the increase of protected areas both on land and in coastal waters. However, 44% of terrestrial eco-regions (areas with a large proportion of shared species and habitat types), and 82% of marine eco-regions, fall below the target of 10% protection. The majority of sites judged to be of special importance to biodiversity also fall outside protected areas.

Biodiversity Futures for the 21st Century


Scientists from a wide range of disciplines came together as part of the preparation of GBO-3 to identify possible future outcomes for biodiversity during the current century, based on observed trends, models and experiments. Their principal conclusions include:



Projections of the impact of global change on biodiversity show continuing and often accelerating species extinctions, loss of natural habitat, and changes in the distribution and abundance of species, species groups and biomes over the 21st Century.

There is a high risk of dramatic biodiversity loss and accompanying degradation of a broad range of ecosystem services if the Earth system is pushed beyond certain thresholds or tipping points.

Earlier assessments have underestimated the potential severity of biodiversity loss based on plausible scenarios, because the impacts of passing tipping points or thresholds of ecosystem change have not previously been taken into account.

There are greateropportunities than identified in earlier assessments to address the biodiversity crisis while contributing to other social objectives; for example, by reducing the scale of climate change without large-scale deployment of biofuels and accompanying loss of natural habitats.

Biodiversity and ecosystem changes could be prevented, significantly reduced or even reversed if strong action is applied urgently, comprehensively and appropriately, at international, national and local levels.

Towards a strategy for reducing biodiversity loss


GBO-3 sets out a number of elements that could be considered in a future strategy to reduce biodiversity loss, and avoid the worst impacts of the scenarios analyzed in the Outlook. It is likely to form the basis of discussion of the strategic plan currently being considered for the next decade of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and due to be agreed at the 10th meeting of the Conference of Parties to the CBD in Nagoya, Japan, in October 2010. The elements include:



Continued and intensified direct intervention to reduce loss of biodiversity, for example through expanding and strengthening protected areas, and programmes targeted at vulnerable species and habitats;

Continued and intensified measures to reduce the direct pressures on biodiversity, such as preventing nutrient pollution, cutting off the pathways for introduction alien invasive species, and introducing more sustainable practices in fisheries, forestry and agriculture;

Much greater efficiency in the use of land, energy, fresh water and materials to meet growing demand from a rising and more prosperous population;

Use of market incentives, and avoidance of perverse subsidies, to minimize unsustainable resource use and wasteful consumption;

Strategic planning to reconcile development with the conservation of biodiversity and the maintenance of the multiple services provided by the ecosystems it underpins;

Restoration of ecosystems to safeguard essential services to human societies, while recognizing that protecting existing ecosystems is generally much more cost-effective than allowing them to degrade in the first place;

Ensuring that the benefits arising from the use of and access to genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, for example through the development of drugs and cosmetics, are equitably shared with the countries and cultures from which they are obtained;

Communication, education and awareness-raising to ensure that as far as possible, everyone understands the value of biodiversity and what steps they can take to protect it, including through changes in personal consumption and behavior.


NOTES TO EDITORS:


1. Global Biodiversity Outlook 3 (GBO-3) , like its two predecessors published in four-yearly intervals since 2002, results from a decision of the Conference of Parties to the CBD [see note 2 below]. It is the product of close collaboration between the Secretariat of the CBD and the United Nations Environment Programme's World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC).


The Outlook has been produced according to a transparent, rigorous process of review. Two separate drafts were made available for review via the Internet during 2009, and comments from some 200 reviewers were considered. The whole production has been supervised by an Advisory Group, and the second draft was subjected to scientific review by a panel comprising leading scientists from governments, inter-governmental bodies and non-governmental organizations. The principal sources on which GBO-3 is based include:


An analysis of the current status and trends of biodiversity, carried out by the Biodiversity Indicators Partnership, a network of organizations coordinated by UNEP-WCMC;

A study of scenarios and models regarding biodiversity in the 21st Century, involving a wide range of scientists under the auspices of the Diversitas network and UNEP-WCMC. This study, "Biodiversity Scenarios: Projections of 21st Century Change in Biodiversity and Associated Ecosystem Services" has also been launched on 10 May and is available at www.cbd.int/gbo3;

Some 500 peer-reviewed scientific journal articles and assessments from inter-governmental and non-governmental bodies reviewed for the Outlook;
110 national reports on biodiversity submitted by governments to the CBD.


The publication of GBO-3 was enabled by financial contributions from Canada, the European Union, Germany, Japan, Spain and the United Kingdom, as well as UNEP.


2. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) opened for signature at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, and entered into force in December 1993. The CBD is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and the equitable sharing of the benefits from utilization of genetic resources. With 193 Parties, the Convention has near universal participation among countries committed to preserving life on Earth. The Convention seeks to address all threats to biodiversity and ecosystem services, including threats from climate change, through scientific assessments, the development of tools, incentives and processes, the transfer of technologies and good practices and the full and active involvement of relevant stakeholders including indigenous and local communities, youth, NGOs, women and the business community. The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety a supplementary treaty to the Convention seeks to protect biological diversity from the potential risks posed by living modified organisms resulting from modern biotechnology. To date, 157 countries and the European Community are party to the Protocol. The Secretariat of the Convention and its Cartagena Protocol is located in Montreal. www.cbd.int/


3. 2010 International Year of Biodiversity The United Nations declared 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity (IYB) to raise awareness about the crucial importance of biodiversity, to communicate the human costs of biodiversity loss, and to engage people, particularly youth, throughout the world in the fight to protect all life on Earth. Initiatives will be organized throughout the year to disseminate information, promote the protection of biodiversity and encourage countries, organizations, and individuals to take direct action to reduce biodiversity loss. The focal point for the year is the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity. www.cbd.int/2010/welcome/


For more information please contact:


David Ainsworth, CBD, +1 514 833 0196 or at david.ainsworth@cbd.int

Johan Hedlund, CBD, +1 514 287 6670 or johan.hedlund@cbd.int

Nick Nuttall, UNEP, +41 795965737 or nick.nuttall@unep.org

Shereen Zorba, UNEP, +254 713601259 or shereen.zorba@unep.org

LINKS TO ADDITIONAL MATERIALS:


Press release in other languages:

French version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/fr.doc

Russian version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/ru.doc

Chinese version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/ch.doc

Arabic version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/ar.doc

Spanish version: http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/sp.doc


Full report: Global Biodiversity Outlook-3 in six languages:

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-ar.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-en.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-es.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-fr.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-ru.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-ar.pdf

http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-final-zh.pdf


Executive Summary in English: http://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-Summary-final-en.pdf


Global Biodiversity Outlook-3 Regional Factsheets:

http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/Africa.pdf

http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/LatinAmerica.pdf

http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/AsiaPacific.pdf

http://www.unep.org/downloads/GBO/WestAsia.pdf


Download the Video News Release (VNR) in broadcast standard or web standard: http://eurovision.net/worldlink/front/view/home.php

MP4 file of the VNR: http://idisk.mac.com/mabelle-Public/David/VNR GOV FINAL.mp4

Information and links regarding the VNRs and B-roll: http://web.me.com/dcurchod/dccdevbiodiv10/GLOBAL_BIODIVERSITY.html

GBO-3 graphics: www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo3/doc/GBO3-graphs.zip

Source: UNEP


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South African Exec Secretary for UNFCCC

CLIMATE POST:
Published 06 May 2010

Article by: Reuters

South Africa's Minister of Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk is front-runner to replace Yvo de Boer as United Nations (UN) climate chief, sources familiar with the selection process told Reuters on Thursday.

The run-off is between developing country candidates, reflecting their rising status in stalled UN climate talks to agree a successor to the existing Kyoto Protocol. De Boer, of the Netherlands, steps down on July 1 after almost four years.

An interview panel had selected a final shortlist of van Schalkwyk and Costa Rica's Christiana Figueres, one source said, adding that van Schalkwyk had the support of key countries. UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon would make the final decision.

A Western diplomat based in New York agreed that those two were the favoured candidates.

"The front runner is Marthinus," said a third source, also on condition of anonymity.

"The positive arguments are that he is a minister and so can talk to ministers, and has been a governor of a state so knows how to manage. You need a politician to deal with politicians."

Van Schalkwyk was Premier of Western Cape Province from 2002 to 2004. Figueres has been a member of the Costa Rican climate negotiating team since 1995. Her father, Jose Figueres Ferrer, was President of Costa Rica three times.

TALKS STALEMATE

UN climate talks ended in an impasse in Copenhagen in December, producing only a non-binding accord that reflected a rich-poor rift over shouldering responsibility for action.

Industrialised countries point to rapid growth in carbon emissions in emerging economies and want to share the burden of carbon cuts thatwere carried by rich countries under the 2008 to 2012 Kyoto Protocol, a treaty the US never ratified.

China has leapfrogged the US as the world's top carbon emitter, but remains far poorer in per capita income and is focused on creating jobs and generating affordable energy.

"It's an important juncture and I hope this appointment makes a difference," said Andrei Marcu, head of regulatory and policy affairs at oil trading firm Mercuria.

South Africa has proposed some of the most ambitious carbon curbs among developing countries, saying that with the right aid its emissions could decline from about 2035.

Norwegian Environment Minister Erik Solheim praised van Schalkwyk. "He is a very strong candidate, as he was the South African minister of the environment (before taking his present post), but there are other strong candidates," he told Reuters.

"It's very likely that secretary-general Ban will appoint someone from a developing nation. That would mean a move from Europe to the developing nations and I think that's very sound."

De Boer announced in February he would step down, saying a new era of diplomacy was starting after the Copenhagen summit fell short of agreeing a new treaty.

Source: UNFCCC


-----------------------------------

WED 2010 Blogging Competition

About the Competition

How would you like to win a trip to Rwanda to cover World Environment Day on June 5th?

The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in partnership with host country Rwanda and TreeHugger, are sponsoring a free trip to Rwanda for a winning blogger to write, blog and tweet about World Environment Day.


Commemorated since 1972, World Environment Day (WED) aims to stimulate worldwide awareness of the environment and encourage political attention and action. This year’s theme; ‘Many Species. One Planet. One Future.’ – focuses on the central importance to humanity of the globe’s wealth of species and ecosystems, and supports the UN International Year of Biodiversity.

Rwanda's location at the heart of the Albertine Rift eco-region is one of Africa’s most biologically diverse regions. It is home to some 40 per cent of the continent’s mammal species (402 species), a huge diversity of birds (1,061 species), reptiles and amphibians (293 species), and higher plants (5,793 species).

So, are you interested, would you like to see Rwanda for yourself?

For every submission UNEP will donate $10 towards Gorilla Conservation projects in Rwanda.

Good Luck!


How to Win

1. Write a blog post about ‘The importance of individual action to celebrate World Environment Day, and how individual actions when multiplied can make a difference to the planet’
2. Post a link to your story onto the UNEP Facebook fan page http://facebook.unep.org with this comment, “I just entered to win a trip to Rwanda for UNEP’s World Environment Day. Read my blog post about what you can do to celebrate World Environment Day!”
3. Entries must be received from the 3rd to the 10th May.
4. Winners will be announced on the 20th May.
5. To increase your chances of winning, post your story on Twitter with the hash tag #WED2010, and encourage friends to comment, ‘like’ the post on Facebook, and retweet your post across Facebook and Twitter.


Entry Requirements

* Your post should be engaging, interesting, and passionate. We are looking for individual perspectives and stories highlighting the competition theme:
‘The importance of individual action to celebrate World Environment Day, and how individual actions when multiplied can make a difference to the planet’
* Clarity is essential. Make it short, snappy and concise. The post must be a minimum of 400 words and a maximum of 600 words.
* Read the World Environment Day website! This will give you detailed information on this year’s theme and events and activities taking place.
* Support your post with links to other web pages that are contextual to your post, including a link to the World Environment Day website. Check other environmental blogs to see how they do it.
* Ask your friends to comment on your post. We are looking to spread the word on World Environment Day. We will take this into account when judging, so the more comments, likes, and re-tweets your post has, the greater your chances of winning.

Judging Criteria

Entries will be judged and a winner will be selected by representatives of UNEP, TreeHugger, and RacePoint Group on behalf of the government of Rwanda. Although this will be a subjective decision based on the opinions of the judges, considerations will include style, grammar, the use of links, and whether we think the post is original, interesting, engaging, and passionate.


Key Dates

April 27th - Competition announcement

May 3rd-10th- Competition open for entries

May 11th to 16th - Judging process

May 20th - Winner announced

June 2nd to 6th - Trip to Rwanda

Source: UNEP

---------------

From Global Green New Deal to Global Green Recovery

Nairobi/Geneva, 3 May 2010 - Asia and in particular China and the Republic of Korea are pioneering an economic and employment recovery based in part on significant investments in a Green Economy.

Over a third of China's stimulus package, equal to three per cent of its GDP, is being spent on high speed rail to boosting its already impressive growth in areas such as wind and solar power and energy efficient lighting.

China is already the leading global producer of solar cells, wind turbines and solar water heaters giving it s renewable energy sector valued at $17 billion which employs close to one million people or 0.1 per cent of the working population.

Meanwhile the Republic of Korea's (South Korea) green new deal plan is allocating 95 per cent of its fiscal stimulus or three per cent of GDP into environmental sectors including low emission vehicles.

Its five-year green-growth investment plan, launched in July 2009, will spend $60 billion to cut carbon dependency with the aim of boosting economic growth to 2020 and generating up to 1.8 million jobs.

This is in contrast to the United States green stimulus, which despite amounting to 12 per cent of the American Recovery and Investment Act, represents only 0.7 per cent of GDP.

And the European Union's green stimulus, whereby 50 per cent of the overall package, represents an investment of just $22.8 billion in low carbon investments or 0.2 per cent of GDP.

These are among the findings in a new book, published by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and Cambridge University Press (CUP) by Edward Barbier, a leading economist and consultant to UNEP's Global Green New Deal/Green Economy Initiative based at the University of Wyoming in the United States.

"With China and South Korea leading the way in environmental investments, other G20 countries must unite to promote a sustainable global economic recovery both through fiscal stimulus and long-term policy implementation," says Professor Barbier, whose book is entitled A Global Green New Deal: Rethinking the Economic Recovery.

'Indeed without a long term vision on how to further catalyze and embed the environment within the economy, there is a real danger that many of the G20's green stimuli will wither and simply go to waste," he adds.

Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director, says: "The financial and economic crisis triggered a fundamental awareness that investments in the environment may be the key to tackling multiple challenges from climate change and food shortages to natural resource scarcity and unemployment".

"Last year UNEP and its advisors recommended that countries which invest one per cent of their GDP in environmental sectors could begin realizing this low carbon, resource efficient, Green Economy path," he adds.

"Professor Barbier's book underlines that while some economies have seized this opportunity, others have not: with the exception of several Asian economies, there remains a gap between ambition and action. 2010, via the G8 and G20 meetings and others?such as the World Bank and IMF events?offer a chance to close and to bridge this ambition gap while broadening the opportunities for Green Growth to a wider number of developing economies on continents such as Africa and Latin America," says Mr Steiner.

Background and Some Facts and Figures from the New Book

UNEP launched its Green New Deal policy brief to its annual gathering of environment ministers in February 2009 with the recommendation that one per cent of GDP be spent on green initiatives.

The new book is expanded version of the brief and an assessment on how far countries have gone towards that goal in terms of investment but also fundamental policy changes and directions.

* Every $1 billion invested in energy efficiency and clean energy in the United States could eventually generate energy savings of $450 million per year.

* Cuts in annual greenhouse-gas emissions could be more than 500,000 tonnes by 2020 leading to an employment boost of around 30,000 job-years ? a 20% increase in jobs over traditional fiscal stimulus measures such as income tax cuts or road building.

A key recommendation in a UNEP report of 2009 was that 1% of gross domestic product (GDP) be spent on green initiatives.

The G20, which accounts for two-thirds of the world's populations, 90% of Global GDP and three quarters of global greenhouse-gas emission, should be financing this.

The report also stressed the need for policy changes at national and global levels to support green fiscal spending.

Professor Barbier estimates that of the $3 trillion spent or earmarked globally for the fiscal stimulus, just over $460 billion is aimed at green investments.

This is equal to around 15 per cent of the total fiscal stimulus or around 0.7 per cent of the G20's GDP.

China and the Republic of Korea lead the way at three per cent of GDP, followed by Saudi Arabia, 1.7 per cent; Australia, 1.2 per cent and Japan, 0.8 per cent.

This is followed by the United States, with 0.7 per cent of its stimuli being green; Germany, 0.5 per cent; France 0.3 per cent and Canada, South Africa and the United Kingdom, 0.2 per cent.

The book also underlines opportunities that may be missed if well-targeted environmental investments backed by policies such as phasing out fuel subsidies to smart market mechanisms such as feed-in tariffs, are halted or scrapped.

Professor Barbier points out that scrapping the $300 billion a year fossil fuel subsidies alone could reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by 6% and add 0.1% to world GDP.

He argues that adopting environmental pricing policies that capture the true value of natural resources allied to canceling a suite of subsidies could increase global GDP by 0.7%-2.2%.

If such policies were internationally coordinated, then such measures could increase the G20's GDP by 1.1%- 3.2%.

"The problems of energy insecurity, climate change, environmental degradation and global poverty will only worsen if we fail to green our current global economic recovery efforts," says Professor Barbier.

Notes to Editors:

For more information on A Global Green New Deal: Rethinking the Economic Recovery please go to the Cambridge University Press website: http://www.cambridge.org/uk/catalogue/catalogue.asp?isbn=9780521132022

Edward B. Barbier is the John S. Bugas professor of Economics in the Department of Economics and Finance, University of Wyoming. He has more than 25 years' experience as an environmental and Resource economist, working mainly on the economics of environment and development issues. He is the author of many books on environmental policy.Some of his well-known works include Blueprint for a Green Economy (with David Pearce and Anil Markandya, 1989) and Natural Resources and Economic Development (2005). For more information: http://uwacadweb.uwyo.edu/Barbier/

UNEP Green Economy Initiative

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) seeks to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations. The Global Green New Deal has inspired the creation of UNEP's Green Economy Initiative, for more information go to: http://www.unep.org/greeneconomy/

For more information please contact:

For an interview with the author, or to receive a review copy of the book, please contact Gretchen Carroll at Cambridge University Press on +44 1223 326 274 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              +44 1223 326 274      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              +44 1223 326 274      end_of_the_skype_highlighting or gcarroll@cambridge.org.

Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson and Head of Media, +41 795 965 737 or +254 733632755, or nick.nuttall@unep.org

Moira O'Brien-Malone, Head, DTIE Communications, UNEP Paris, Tel: +33 1 44 37 76 12 or moira.obrien-malone@unep.org

Souce: UNEP