What lies ahead regarding biodiversity? Join the debate in Serralves on 10 and 11 September 2019
Article
On 10 and 11 September 2019, Porto hosts the International Conference of the Park, in Serralves. The aim is to bring together inspiring speakers and experts for scientific insights on problems of the past, present and the challenges for the future regarding planet restoration.
For two days, Serralves features a comprehensive programme, from 8.30am until 8.30pm to through light on thought, namely environmental change, climate change, impact on the planet, the future of Nature and how will we, human kind, deal with the future of Earth.
Past personal beliefs that climate change is pure fraud and fake news, scientific indisputable facts show that humans are altering the planet's ecosystem at a never seen rate.
The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), an intergovernmental organization established to improve the interface between science and policy on issues of biodiversity and ecosystem services, released an assessment report on May 2019, on Nature's dangerous decline, recognising threats to the ecosystem at an unprecedented rate and on a world-wide scale. Over 1 million animal and plant species are endangered at a global level.
The report is clear on four key points:
(i)Nature's vital contribution to people is globally deteriorating;
(ii)Agents of change are altering fast;
(iii)Sustainability goals till and after 2030 can only be reached through transformative change, namely economic, social, political and technological;
(iv)Conservation, restauration and sustainable use of Nature demand urgent and concerted efforts to foster such long-term change.
The programme presents debates, talks and the screening of a movie on one of the most biodiverse regions of Portugal: the Guadiana Valley.
It is important to enhance that this conference takes place in a time when the United Nations decade on Biodiversity is almost ending - 2011-2020 - and it is clear that the ambitious goals of the Aichi Convention on Biological Diversity (CDB) will not be met.
This conference is a starting point on the debate on biodiversity loss, the 2019 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 25), which will be discussed in Santiago de Chile, Chile from 2 to 13 December.
This major event is jointly organised by the Serralves Foundation and the CIBIO-InBIO (Centre for Research in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, Porto), with the support of the EDP Biodiversity Chair.
See here for further information.