David Cooper, Acting Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Secretariat. PHOTO/ IISD/ENB|Angeles Estrada.
By SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Turning 2030 goals into reality will require action across all of society, and with environmental challenges considered in a holistic way and not by category.
This was the theme of a dialogue between leaders and senior representatives of international environmental agreements held during the Global Environment Facility’s Seventh Assembly, in Vancouver.
Funding from the GEF helps developing countries adhere to environmental goals set at the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, and Minamata Convention on Mercury.
The Washington-based family of funds has also been selected as a financial mechanism for the new High Seas agreement on biodiversity beyond national jurisdictions (BBNJ).
Monika Stankiewicz, Executive Secretary of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, said phasing out the harmful use of mercury in everyday products and industrial processes including small-scale mining was a vital part of efforts to “meet the global imperative to reduce global pollution, risks to human health and climate change.” She noted that an October meeting of parties to the Minamata Convention would consider a proposal on the phasing out of mercury-containing fluorescent lamps.
“Energy efficiency and waste management benefits alone justify this rapid evolution of the convention,” she said, also stressing the relevance of mercury poisoning in efforts to reduce and reverse nature loss. “This is evident when you look at how the extent of biodiversity loss and the loss of food system functions is driven by pollution.”
Rolph Payet, Executive Secretary of the Basel Convention (controlling the transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal), the Stockholm Convention (on persistent organic pollutants) and the Rotterdam Convention (covering the international trade of certain hazardous chemicals), also emphasized the need to be holistic and not siloed in considering what can be done for the environment.
Monika Stankiewicz, Executive Secretary, Minamata Convention. PHOTO/ IISD/ENB|Angeles Estrada
“We need to really think from a life cycle perspective and an integrated perspective,” Payet said. “Once you start looking at things from a different dimension, it gives you a special ability to really connect things together. We don’t operate in silos.”
This sentiment was echoed in the discussion by GEF CEO and Chairperson Carlos Manuel Rodríguez, who said closely coordinated work across the environmental conventions would help “move the needle on the ultimate challenge” of ensuring that different government ministries – such as ministries of environment, agriculture, energy, and finance – work more closely together to address inter-related environmental threats.
This was also echoed by Louise Baker, Managing Director of the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD, who pointed to the Great Green Wall initiative in Africa as an example of cohesive work to support sustainable land management with wide benefits.
