Europe saw little of spring this year. We moved from winter into summer with much of the later March and April temperatures hovering round 25°C. On the other hand, in Bangladesh, the temperature dropped to an exceptionally low of 8°C. These striking changes in weather patterns, increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters and growing evidence of climate change have, in combination with the Stern Report (1), caused what appears to be a fundamental shift in public opinion: status quo is not an option.
What is interesting is that the realities of political and public perception have focused on an issue that, in the past, was hard to anchor in the public debate: the conservation of nature. Now, with climate change hitting us, and projected to hit even harder in the future, attention is turning to the ways we can manage nature to reduce climate change or mitigate its impacts.
One technical reflection of that role can be found in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2). It was a major milestone in the way we perceive and argue for biodiversity conservation. Many people believe, however, that we have not fully harnessed the momentum generated by it, although there have been several follow-up actions, interestingly, much of them in the private sector.
A strategy for business engagement The World Conservation Union (IUCN) has been at the forefront of working with business on conservation. Our vision in our work with the private sector is “a sustainable economy in which businesses are committed and effective partners in achieving a just world that values and conserves nature” as reflected in the IUCN Private Sector Strategy adopted in 2004 (3). The same year, at the 3rd IUCN World Conservation Congress, the Union’s 1000 member organisations further resolved to proactively engage business for mainstreaming biodiversity into corporate policies and operations. This led to increased IUCN capacity and work with business in the following years, based on solid guidelines and due diligence (4).
Our approach recognizes that businesses vary in size, commitment and capacity, and that a combination of approaches, ranging from awareness-raising to the development of tools and the strengthening of public and corporate policies, will be needed to harness the business potential for conservation across different scales and geographies. We work with business directly, and we also encourage business to demonstrate its commitment to conservation through international fora, as happened when we promoted business involvement in the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (5).
IUCN continues to support the public and corporate policy making in this arena. For instance, it is assisting the European Commission in the development of an EU Business and Biodiversity Initiative. The Netherlands Committee for IUCN has organized a very influential ‘Leaders for Nature Initiative’ that is contributing to changes in both public and corporate policy. A similar initiative is also under development in Switzerland, with prospects for replication in other parts of the world.
Islands of excellence Our business portfolio has featured several years of collaboration with Shell on the company’s biodiversity policy as well as on some real life problems such as oil and gas exploration in China and the conservation of Western Gray Whales in the north-east of Russia. With the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), we have developed best practice guidance for mining and biodiversity that ICMM member companies and other associations have begun to apply. We have also made progress on a dialogue, which is still underway, between business and indigenous peoples in mining.
Earlier this year, I was delighted to sign a cooperation agreement with Holcim’s CEO, Markus Akermann. This major partnership aims at strengthening Holcim’s corporate policy and action for biodiversity conservation as well as leveraging mutual capacities and outreach of the partners to support sustainable livelihoods. In the longer term, we hope this will contribute to higher industry standards in the cement and aggregate sectors.
Energy spans all aspects of the climate change and biodiversity debate. In 2006, IUCN launched a major Energy, Ecosystems and Livelihoods Initiative. This looks at the rising global interest in alternative fuels; at the opportunities to enhance biodiversity conservation that this creates, as well as the threats. The reallocation of land and seascapes to alternate fuels has profound implications for nature that can neither be under-estimated nor ignored.
Failing to assess and harness this opportunity to strengthen biodiversity conservation, however, would limit our ability to be part of the solution to the multiple challenges of energy, climate change and biodiversity conservation that society faces. Through the Initiative, we hope to develop a better understanding of the energy scenarios from a conservation perspective and how an integrated approach to energy supply might aid rather than erode biodiversity.
In implementing our Private Sector Strategy, we have also been engaging our business partners in exploring venues for biodiversity finance in recognition of the gaps and limitations of the current financing mechanisms that are largely in the public sector. Together with Shell, and in consultation with a variety of relevant organizations and people, we have scoped out a concept for a Business and Biodiversity Facility with a purpose to develop and mobilize markets for biodiversity products and services. We are hoping to take the idea forward in the months ahead.
Successful and rewarding as the different initiatives and partnerships of IUCN or other organisations are, they remain ‘islands of excellence’. They are useful for inspirations and learning, but they by no means suffice to address the huge and complex challenges that face us.
Coming together For a meaningful change, it is essential that the conservation, development and business communities share their understanding of the challenges and commit to their solution. It requires rising above narrow sectoral interests and being prepared and willing for the trade offs that must inevitably be made in the broader interest of a sustainable future. While there is a compelling need for such a partnership, the current institutional architecture for global dialogue does not provide the mechanisms and space for this.
I would therefore like to propose that we explore the possibility of instituting a Global Energy Commission. The task of such a platform, which would have a finite lifespan, would be to provide a comprehensive overview of the likely energy scenarios for the future, and to recommend options for how best the world energy demands could be met through an integrated approach that embodies the multiple sources of energy and ensures that solving one crisis does not create another.
The idea would require further consultation with other organizations that have a shared interest in energy issues. These would include, among others, inter-governmental organizations such as the CBD Secretariat and FAO; business associations such as the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, and the International Chamber of Commerce; and multilateral development institutions, such as the World Bank; and others. Depending on their interest and possibilities, some or all of these, and other similar organizations, may join hands in setting up such a commission together with IUCN.
Harnessing the unprecedented interest and willingness to address the world environmental problems is only possible through collective action. And it is also vital that we provide an alternative to short-sighted and short-term political and technical fixes, and provide long-term, science-based and multistakeholder pragmatic solutions.
If we agree that the lives of peoples, including their economic activities, are threatened by the onslaught of climate change and biodiversity loss, and that our future is fundamentally intertwined with that of our planet, then I am confident we can translate informed debate into collective action to secure a healthy and liveable planet.
Julia Marton-Lefevre is Director General,
the World Conservation Union (IUCN).
(1)
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/independent_reviews/stern_review_economics_climate_change/stern_review_report.cfm (2)
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (3)
http://www.iucn.org/themes/business/Docs/PrivateSectorStrategy_31%20March%2004.pdf (4)
http://www.iucn.org/themes/business/PS%20Guidelines.pdf (5)
http://www.iucn.org/themes/pbia/documents/positionpapers/private-English-formatted.pdf