EcoChic (20-21 January 2010)

Communities, businesses, and governments must join in efforts to halt the rapid loss of biodiversity, UNCTAD´s Deputy Secretary-General said as a two-day conference opened on sustainable use of the world´s flora and fauna.

UNCTAD Deputy Secretary-General Petko Draganov began a two-day conference on "The Best Use of Nature" by telling 500 prominent figures from government, international organizations, and the cosmetic and fashion industries that sustainable use of the globe´s treasure of diverse life forms - and steps to halt the current rapid rate of species loss - will require teamwork and imagination.

"We need to ensure that production and consumption processes work for the benefit of biodiversity and generate social, economic and environmental benefits for all countries, and, in particular, for developing countries," Mr. Draganov said.

The gathering, which marks the 2010 United Nations International Year of Biodiversity and highlights UNCTAD´s BioTrade and Creative Economy and Industries programmes, which are based on environmentally responsible economic development, will conclude Thursday evening with a show of ecologically sustainable fashions. The conference and "Ecochic" fashion show are being staged by UNCTAD in collaboration with the non-governmental organization Green2greener, which promotes sustainable living.

Fashion designers from the around the world are attending the conference to illustrate that business practices can be adapted to protect, rather than exploit, the world´s species, and that the concept of sustainability can successfully be adapted to economic growth and the creation of jobs in the developing world.

Mr. Draganov told the opening session of the meeting that "The private sector has the opportunity and responsibility to become increasingly involved in the management and conservation of biodiversity. However," he added, "they cannot do it alone."

Governments and international agencies must work to promote sustainable production and consumption, access to markets for sustainably produced goods, and the better availability of credit and technology that can support the sustainable use of nature, he said.

Others addressing the opening meeting on the topic of "Linking biodiversity and sustainable development" were Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and Ricardo Duarte, Vice-Minister of Business Development of Colombia.

Mr. Djoghlaf said unprecedented loss of biodiversity is threatening the very capacity of the planet to sustain life. Land and nature are not commodities to be exploited, he said; rather, they are part of a community to which human beings also belong, and it is necessary for all to live in harmony with nature.

Mr. Duarte reviewed Colombia´s efforts to link biodiversity and business development, saying the government is revising its National Policy on Biodiversity; is formulating a National BioTrade Programme in cooperation with UNCTAD; and is implementing a Productive Transformation Programme to develop 12 sectors of its economy while keeping biodiversity and sustainable development in mind. The country has more than 55,000 species of plants, Mr. Duarte said; has 99 ecosystems; and all told has some 10% of the world´s biodiversity. As steps are taken to devise marketable products and identify methods for protecting and benefiting from the nation´s plant and animal species, domestic and international investment will be sought to bring sustainable goods to world markets, Mr. Duarte said.

Biodiversity loss has accelerated in recent years, and the current rate of human-caused (anthropogenic) species extinction was estimated by the 2005 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment to be 1,000 times more rapid than the "natural" rate of extinction typical of Earth´s long-term history. The primary cause is loss of habitat as the human population expands and forests and wetlands are taken over for farming, housing, and other human activities.

UNCTAD´s 20-21 January "Best Use of Nature" event will emphasize the contribution of businesses and consumers to achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and the 2010 Biodiversity Target, an overall conservation target aiming to stem biodiversity loss by the end of the year 2010.