APPENDIX 6
Memorandum submitted by the Secretariat
of Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD)
Among those issues identified by the EAC, these
comments focus mainly on issue 8 namely the usefulness of the
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment to the Convention on Biological
Diversity. In doing so we may touch upon other issues as well.
The Convention on Biological Diversity was one
of the "users" of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
and, as such, was represented on the Governing Board of the Assessment.
Several CBD Staff participated in the writing teams for the various
chapters of the Assessment, as well as in the Biodiversity Synthesis.
As mandated by the Conference of the Parties (Seventh meeting,
in 2002), many national focal points of the convention participated
in the peer review process, and the Convention's Subsidiary Body
on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA) reviewed
the draft reports of the MA, in particular, the Biodiversity Synthesis.
The MA Panel duly took these comments into account in finalizing
the Assessment . SBSTTA then reviewed the finalized product, and
identified implications of the findings of the assessment for
the future work of the Convention. Based on the work of SBSTTA,
the Conference of the Parties at its Eighth Meeting in 2004 adopted
a decision setting out the Implications of the findings of the
assessment for the future work of the Convention (Decision VIII/9,
attached as annex 1).
The MA has proved useful to the Convention in
a number of ways:
1. The MA provides an authoritative assessment
of the status and trends of biodiversity, of the drivers of biodiversity
loss, and of the response options available. The assessment is
widely quoted in CBD documents, speeches and press releases. In
this sense the MA has fulfilled a function analogous to that of
the IPCC for climate change.
2. The MA has reinforced the concept of ecosystem
services, highlighting the critical role of biodiversity in underpinning
ecosystem functions and in sustaining ecosystem services.
3. The MA has drawn attention to the declining
state of most ecosystem services and the continuing loss of biodiversity.
Critically, it has pointed out that such loss threatened to undermine
efforts to achieve the development and poverty reduction objectives
of the Millennium Development Goals. The MA thus highlighted the
importance of the 2010 Biodiversity Target as well as the magnitude
of the task to achieve it.
4. The MA contributed to the testing of the
set of indicators adopted under the CBD process and has validated
a number of them.
5. The MA has emphasized need to address
the drivers of biodiversity loss, to "mainstream" biodiversity
in policy making in the sectors that give rise to these impacts,
and to address linkages between the conservation and sustainable
use of biodiversity and, among others, international trade, finance,
agriculture, forestry, tourism, mining, energy and fisheries.
These points are now being taken into account through (a) implementation
of national biodiversity strategies and action plans and (b) revision
of the Convention's programmes of work.
The above points were reflected in the Convention's
flagship publication: "Global Biodiversity Outlook 2"
www.biodiv.org/gbo2 which was launched in 2006 at the Eighth meeting
of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention.
The findings of the MA have been well received
and appear to be widely understood by those responsible for environmental
management in governments, civil society and the private sector.
However it appears that the findings have not been sufficiently
understood or internalized by other departments of governments,
notably departments responsible for planning (in developing countries)
and international development cooperation (in developed countries),
or by society more broadly
The Conference of the Parties encourages countries
to conduct national assessments making use of the conceptual framework
and methodologies of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (Decision
VIII/9, para 23). An assessment report for the UK would thus be
a positive response to this call. Given the importance of cross-scale
interactions highlighted by the MA, it would certainly be relevant
to include external UK impacts in such an assessment. Including
external impacts would provide an empirical baseline against which
progress in meeting the challenge established in the UK's Sustainable
Development Strategy on sustainable production and consumption
(recently highlighted by the Secretary of State as "One Planet
Living") could be assessed.
In addition, as a member of the G8, G8+5 and
other influential fora, and through partnerships such as the Sustainable
Development Dialogues, the UK could play an important role in
promoting both the findings of the MA and the use of its methodologies
more broadly.
October 2006
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