Ramesh Jaura Talks to Ian Redmond A tropical field British biologist and conservationist Ian Redmond has served as Ambassador for the UN Year of the Gorilla in 2009 and for the UNEP Convention on Migratory Species since 2010. BERLIN | LONDON (IDN) – The fact that ecosystems and human health intersect has been repeatedly emphasized […]
Communities in Mozambique Inspired to Curb Deforestation
By Mariane Almeida and Sofia Barbeiro The two writers are part of a team of Young Environmental Journalists covering Africa. RIO de JANEIRO | LISBON (IDN) – In Mozambique’s province of Gaza, 9,240 tons of charcoal are produced every year placing pressure on the region’s natural resources. Wood burning for charcoal production has led to […]
Hawaiian Culture and Native Plant: The ‘Inseparable Bond’
By UN News KAUAI, Hawaii (IDN) – The 17 goals agreed by the global community to reduce poverty and crate a sustainable planet are the responsibility of all people, wherever they are in the world, according to the United Nations. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) represent a boundary-pushing blueprint for the future of the Earth […]
India To Host the UN Conference on Migratory Species
By Rita Joshi BONN (IDN) – Based on an ancient Sanskrit saying, the theme ‘Migratory species connect the planet and together we welcome them home’ will guide the 13th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS COP13) in Gandhinagar, a planned city in the western Indian state of […]
India Calls for A Global Water Action Agenda to Restore Degraded Land
By Devinder Kumar NEW DELHI (IDN) – As COP14, the 14th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) entered the second week, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened the ministerial segment calling on the international community to set up a global water action agenda as the […]
Organic Agriculture Key to Combat Land Degradation
By Devinder Kumar NEW DELHI (IDN) – In 2018, the first 100% organic state in the world, Sikkim in the North of India, received the Gold Award of the UN backed Future Policy Award, also known as ‘Oscar’ for best policies. The policy enhances soil fertility and increases biodiversity at field and landscape level. Further […]
India To Host UN Conference On Land Degradation
By Jutta Wolf BONN (IDN) – India will host the global Conference on desertification, land degradation and drought from October 7 to 18, 2019 in New Delhi. Participants from 197 Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) will have access, for the first time, to a wealth of vital new scientific data, says […]
The Menace of Land Degradation Threatens 3.2 Billion People
By J C Suresh TORNONTO | MEDELLIN, Colombia (IDN) – Deteriorating land degradation caused by human activities is menacing the well-being of the world’s 3.2 billion people, driving species to extinction, escalating climate change, triggering mass human migration and whetting conflict, according to an evidence-based assessment of land degradation and restoration. The perils of land […]
Protecting Chimps is in Our Self-Interest, Says Eminent Conservationist
By J Nastranis
NEW YORK | MANILA (IDN) – Chimpanzees – which share some 99 per cent of their DNA with us – are in trouble, despite national protection efforts across Africa, says the world-renowned conservationist Ian Redmond.
“Although our zoological next of kin with the widest distribution of any ape apart from ourselves, they are an endangered species. Most are declining in number – victims of habitat loss and poaching – and have been extirpated in at least three, possibly five other countries,” he said.
Redmond – who is Ambassador to the Convention on Migratory Species – was speaking from the Philippines where he is participating in this year’s largest global wildlife summit. The triennial meeting of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS COP12), which opened in Manila on October 23, has agreed to list Chimpanzees on both its Appendices to offer them much-needed trans-border protection.
UNESCO and China Support UNCCD in Combating Desertification
By Devinder Kumar
NEW DELHI | BEIJING (IDN) – Aware that 2.6 billion people depend directly on agriculture, but 52 per cent of the farm land is affected by soil degradation, not only UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the specialised agency UNCCD but also UNESCO have stressed the compelling need to rehabilitate every year at least 12 million hectares of degraded land.
At the same time, during the global observance of the World Day to Combat Desertification – this year in Beijing – China and the UNCCD launched the Joint Action Initiative to combat desertification, rehabilitate degraded land and mitigate the effects of drought (JAI).