In two high-level virtual events, stakeholders from around the world joined leaders and champions of NbS from the private and public sector, to find out more about what is being done worldwide and what can be done with the Standard, to mainstream Nature-based Solutions and redefine our relationship with nature. CEM Chair Angela Andrade, participated in the high-level launch panel discussion, speaking about the role of science and the knowledge needed to maintain the Standard robust.The recordings of the High-Level Launch Event and the High-Level Discussion Panel are now available. The two publications – the Global Standard for NbS and the Guidance for using the Standard – were made available in English, Spanish and French. The User Guide will be available soon on the IUCN website. Click here for more information on the Global Standard for Nature-based Solutions, its history and the rigorous consultation process behind its creation.

To contribute with the development of the Global Standard’s overall governance structure, CEM’s Steering Committee and several CEM Thematic Group Leads met in late August to brainstorm on the Science and Knowledge Committee (SKC), in which the CEM Chair and the NbS TG Lead will represent CEM. The main subjects discussed were the committee’s roles; the need for a scientific network; the type of membership required to ensure that all sectors are represented and engaged; possible ways to ensure constructive and efficient interactions between the SKC and the other three affiliate bodies within the governance structure; and some research priorities on which the SKC could focus.

Youth participation in science is one of the great challenges faced by a small country like El Salvador. Francisco S. Álvarez, member of the CEM-YPN, founding member and current president of the Fundación Naturaleza El Salvador, promoted the first funding opportunity for young scientists in El Salvador through the Foundation’s Research Grant Program. This program provides learning opportunities through experience, sharing with more experienced young Salvadoran scientists who collaborate as tutors for future young researchers in the country. This fund promotes the creation of science-based solutions to major global environmental challenges. The fund is aligned with the strategic lines of work of the IUCN and encourages the participation of young people within the different thematic groups of the IUCN. In its first edition, this fund will be financing two research projects involving threatened or endangered species according to IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species. Now, two young scientists accompanied by their tutors will investigate the humpback whales present in Salvadoran coasts, as well as the amphibians from the cloud forest in the highest mountain of El Salvador. This program hopes to create learning opportunities for future researchers in El Salvador, and that their work generates relevant information that contributes to improve the management and protection of this country's biodiversity. For more information visit the Fundación Naturaleza El Salvador website.

The United Nations is leading a revision process for its System for Environmental Economic Accounts – Experimental Ecosystem Accounts (SEEA-EEA). A number of CEM members are contributing as authors and working group members, along with Juha Siikamaki from IUCN secretariat. David Keith and Emily Nicholson are representing the RLE team on the spatial and condition working groups, respectively. Draft chapters of the review were released for public consultation in February, with feedback discussed at a virtual Forum of Experts in June. David presented the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology to the forum, which has been adopted as the SEEA-EEA reference classification for ecosystem assets. Revised chapters of the revised SEEA-EEA are in preparation and planned for release late in 2020.

CEM has been contributing to the discussion of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework and hopes that the agenda is adopted in 2021 at the next CBD COP 15 (2nd quarter of 2021), and provides a clear roadmap to 2030, with ambitious Goals and Targets. In the commitment to its development, CEM is participating in several preparative events for the COP. For instance, our Fisheries Expert Group (FEG) aims to participate in the 24th Session of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA24) of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), now postponed to the first trimester of 2021. For SBSTTA24, FEG is organizing a side-event in cooperation with the Environment Defense Fund, FAO, and the CBD Secretariat. The concept note, currently being finalized, will soon be submitted. The side event will address the interface between fisheries management and marine conservation and will inform the development of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.

RLE TG welcomes Marcos Valderrabano who joined the Global Ecosystem Management Programme in IUCN Secretariat as Red List of Ecosystems Programme Manager. Marcos comes from the Mediterranean Regional Office of IUCN where he had experience with Red List projects, as well as other IUCN initiatives such as Key Biodiversity Areas. He is a key point of contact for the RLE and is actively working on the RLE strategy, training resources and outreach. CEM members wish Marcos well and look forward to working with him into the future in his new capacity as RLE programme manager.

The first Red List of Ecosystems for Myanmar was recently published, developed in a partnership including Myanmar’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation, WCS, James Cook University, University of New South Wales and IUCN. The assessment included 64 ecosystems, including extensive shoreline and tidal systems, tropical and subtropical forests, savannas, seasonally inundated wetlands, and high-altitude alpine ecosystems. These ecosystems support impressive diversity, with more than 16,000 plant, 314 mammal, 1150 bird, 293 reptile, and 139 amphibian species. All of the Red List of Ecosystems criteria were assessed in association with national ecosystem experts. Assessors found that approximately 45% of the assessed ecosystems are threatened, 26% are Data Deficient (insufficient published information to assess their risk), and one ecosystem has already collapsed. More information can be found on the project website with a preprint manuscript about the status and distribution of Myanmar's ecosystems available at bioRxiv.  

In addition to the National RLE Assessment of Myanmar, four new RLE assessments were published recently. Two of them are strategic assessments of local ecosystems: The Indian Sundarbans mangrove forest, which is one of the world’s largest mangrove forests, and the Oyster Reef ecosystem of Southern and Eastern Australia. With a broader perspective, a multinational team assessed the Sand Dunes system of the South Atlantic Coast, which is distributed across the coastlines of Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. Finally, experts from the Chinese Academy of Sciences used the IUCN RLE criteria to assess the conservation status of China's forests. This is the link to the assessments.

Irene Zager (Provita and RLE TG) presented on “Assessing the conservation status of the world's ecosystems with the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems” at the "Ecosystem Restoration: Global Initiatives in Science and Practice" webinar series, hosted by the Ecosystem Restoration Thematic Group (ERTG) on August 21. The webinar aimed to provide an update on recent RLE progress and achievements, with emphasis on its applications. Over 200 individuals attended the live session, which is available through the ERTG youtube channel. Visit this direct link.  

The TG is working hard with numerous collaborators on a Case Study of Best Practice to be released shortly. The best practice approach incorporates the establishment of a scientific evidence-based baseline mapping based on five categories of weed cover across the landscape. The baseline information provides background information about impact of weed species on biodiversity. From these baseline understandings it will be possible to determine the most effective place and method to restore and manage invasive species to restore biodiversity. Using this methodology, they will be able to measure the ecological and economic effectiveness of restoration involving invasive species over time. This approach is becoming more widely known and adopted. The TG hopes that when the final Case Study document has been produced, the approach will be able to be implemented across the Global community. In this link you can click on the December Newsletter to read more about the approach.

IPBES Invasive Species Assessment

The IPBES Invasive Species Assessment is now available for external review at this link please take this opportunity to provide your comments to this early draft of the document.

Doha, Qatar, August 26, 2020 – The Qur’anic Botanic Garden (QBG) hosted a highly informative online discussion titled ‘Challenges Facing the Flora and Ecosystems of the Arabian Peninsula and Immediate Actions Required’.  The webinar featured several experts in the field and was moderated by Mr. Ahmed El-Gharib, assistant researcher and active CEM West Asia member. Discussion topics included biodiversity, the protection of endangered species, socioeconomics and plant conservation, restoration projects, and potential medicinal plants and their uses. A series of case studies were also presented, relating to the objectives of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation 2020, a program of the Convention on Biological Diversity agreed by Qatar and 195 other governments around the world. The webinar witnessed the revival of the Arabian Plant Species Specialist Group (APSG), a body established in 1996 and the first of its kind to have a geographical rather than taxonomic coverage. Its members include the countries of the Arabian Peninsula, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, and Iraq. The APSG aims to bring together interested parties to agree on standards and protocols for individual countries, so that that they can meet targets for the conservation and preservation of their plant species. The APSG will help botanists facilitate knowledge transfer and collaborations and effectively execute conservation projects regionally.Find here the YouTube webinar recording.

After the virtual launch of the Global Standard for Nature-based Solution and call of action and the buildup interest from the different international stakeholders to adopt these guidelines further, three CEM- West Asian members (Tamer Khafaga – Regional Chair, Hatem Shabana – Member and Ahmed El Gharib – Member) proposed and wrote a concept note that aims to improve some positive initiatives in St. Catherine area, South Sinai – Egypt. Saint Catherine town is famous as interconnecting to the world’s major three Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), where Moses believed to have received the ten commandments, Christianity flourished with the orthodox monastic tradition still active till the present day and where the prophet Mohammed gave his protection with a letter to the Sinai Monks. The initiatives support the newly developed Nature-based Solutions Standard, climate change mitigation and the 2030 UN Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals.

We are certainly living in unusual and unprecedented times. People all over the world are rethinking their lives, their routines and their values as a result of the current global Covid19 pandemic. Many conservationists, young and old, have reached a point of questioning their roles and potentially even “shifting from prevention to damage control”. While this is a sobering and frightening concept it is real and we need to all realise that our natural heritage and natural identity is at serious risk.

 Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), over the last five years, has managed to formally secure more than 5,100 hectares of Nature Reserves and over 100,000 hectares of Protected Environments in priority areas. These strategically selected protected areas secure threatened habitats, threatened species and critical ecosystem services. They fall within the nationally identified Strategic Water and Groundwater Source Areas and contribute to the National Protected Area Expansion Strategy. EWT is also in the process of securing more hectares of Nature Reserves and Protected Environments looking at potentially formally securing at least 250,000 ha of intact natural habitat over the next five years. Linked to this it is imperative that development is implemented in a responsible and sustainable manner. Developers often unknowingly submit proposed development applications in highly sensitive areas which would have lasting and usually permanent impacts on wildlife and the ecosystem services that support local people and downstream urban centres. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process is designed and intended to assess and guide these developments in order to avoid, reduce, rehabilitate and/or offset these impacts according the mitigation hierarchy. The EWT is driving a project to improve the EIA process and associated legislation. For more information contact: Dr. Ian Little CEM Regional Chair for Eastern and Southern Africa.

CEM Regional Chair for South Asia, Dr. Shalini Dhyani, participated as a distinguished panelist for the Special Panel Discussion Session on “Green Growth & Sustainability Strategies” on 27th August  in National Institute for Disaster Management along with international and national technical partners orgnaised three-day Conference on “Science & Technology Research-Policy-Practice Interface for Climate Risk Management” from 25th to 27th August under the CAP-RES Project sponsored by DST-GoI. The event was organized by CEM S. Asia member Dr. Anil Kumar Gupta.

Dr. Madhav Karki (CEM Deputy Chair) and Dr. Shalini Dhyani (CEM RC South Asia) participated in regional CEM meeting organized by Nepal country members to discuss the current situation of COVID 19 and ecosystem conservation and management issues on 17th July, 2020. The online webinar was attended by large number of Nepal members. Dr. Rishi Shah, Dr. Madhav Karki, Ms. Yamuna Ghale, Dr. Shalini Dhyani and Dr. Mahendra Maharjan talked about pertinent issues related to Nepal’s ecosystems, agroecosystem challenges, and largely zoonitics and pandemic diseases. The event was organized by CEM Nepal country lead Dr. Sushila Nepali and members Dr. Mohan P. Devkota and Dr. Prahlad Thapa.

Dr. Shalini Dhyani participated as a panelist in a webinar on impact of COVID 19 on Biodiversity Research in India. Event was based on an online survey that was responded by more than 500 researchers across India. The event was organized by Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, Kochi.

The Global Ecosystem Management Programme has been working with CEM to develop and test a rangeland health assessment and monitoring methodology for the last 3 years. This has been in collaboration with FAO with funding from the GEF. This methodology commonly known as PRAGA (Participatory Rangelands and Grassland Assessment) is designed to assess rangeland/grassland health from the land user’s perspective; considers both scientific and local knowledge, and is supported by a number of core representative indicators. The methodology is also designed to assess rangeland health at scale but with enough flexibility to adapt to specific context and country. The methodology is guided by two competing principles: adequate detail for decision making and low cost. A core component of the methodology is participation by relevant stakeholders at different stages. Information generated from the methodology guides the day-to-day decision-making by land users and guides investment and planning by local and national governments. The methodology has so far been tested in seven countries which include Kenya, Niger, Burkina Faso, Kyrgyzstan, Uruguay, Jordan and Egypt and there are prospects to roll it out in other regions within these countries not targeted the 1st round of assessment and also to replicate it in other countries. Most of the countries where the methodology has been tested so far are IUCN state members and within the countries, IUCN members were involved to a large extend in testing the methodology. Lessons learnt from testing the methodology in the seven initial countries have been documented and the draft methodology is currently being reviewed. A revised methodology will be available before the end of this year. For more information PRAGA Methodology.

La Estrella marsh is a giant wetland of 4000,000 ha located in the north of Argentina (Formosa Province) and mostly formed by the spillage of the Pilcomayo River that starts in the Andes mountain range (Bolivia) and ends in the La Estrella (Argentina). The marsh has a natural pulsating regime governed by the Pilcomayo River regime and has been formed in part due to the elevation of the Route 28 in its east border with the idea to accumulate water for irrigation.  Every year, when the marsh dries up during the spring, the fish must swim into the Pilcomayo River (upstream) or move to the Salado River (downstream) to seek refuge in areas where the water has adequate oxygen levels and temperature, avoiding being trapped in the anoxic lagoons that remain in the marsh.  While fish mortality is a recurrent and natural phenomenon, in 2020, it has increased significantly because the water management agency of Formosa Province closed the connection with the Salado River in order to dump water into the irrigation channels that drain the area. As a consequence thousands of fish, mostly sábalo (Prochilodus lineatus) were trapped and died due to unsuitable water quality conditions. Massive sábalo mortality is of big concern also for Bolivian authorities because this species represents the main target species of Bolivian fisheries at the middle Pilcomayo course. This case shows the need to harmonize the use of water in such systems taking into account the natural hydrologic dynamic. It is necessary that water management agencies meet the demands of irrigation for the local agricultural production but being compatible with the life cycle of fish species and their ecological requirements. 

Four more countries have successfully completed the first step of their national ecosystem assessments. In coordination with the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre’s (UNEP-WCMC) National Ecosystem Assessment Initiative, Azerbaijan, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Cambodia and Grenada have successfully conducted scoping studies that will set the foundations for their national assessments.National ecosystem assessments (NEAs) are expert evaluations of the current knowledge on trends in biodiversity and ecosystem services, including how people engage and depend on them. Based on IPBES assessments, NEAs combine stakeholder engagement, scientific research and other knowledge systems to synthesize available information and existing gaps; aiming to integrate the values of biodiversity and ecosystem services into policy setting and decision-making.

In their scoping studies, Azerbaijan, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Cambodia and Grenada defined key policy questions to address in their NEAs. In coordination with UNEP-WCMC and UN Development Programme (UNDP), the four countries are now selecting authors to produce their comprehensive reports. Authors will represent a range of knowledge systems, expertise and geographies, reflecting each country’s diversity and tailoring each assessment to national needs.Click here to read more on scoping for NEAs and the experiences of each partner country. CEM members are welcome to contact assessment@unep-wcmc.org for any inquiries on conducting national ecosystem assessments in their respective countries.

This work is carried out under the umbrella of the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Network (BES-Net) hosted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), with support from the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety of the Federal Republic of Germany

In alignment with IUCN’s high-level virtual events to mainstream NbS and redefine human relation with nature and address societal challenges, an active member of CEM’s Young Professionals Network (YPN) Ms Enas Sarahneh –from Jordan– volunteered to translate to Arabic the IUCN Global Standard for Nature-based Solutions, as well as the Guidance for using the Global Standard. The initiative had the full support from Angela Andrade; IUCN CEM Global Chair, believing in the importance of integrating young professionals in the conservation efforts. The translation came into reality through the help of IUCN CEM West Asia Regional Chair; Mr Tamer Khafaga, and IUCN ROWA’s support, from the Regional Director; Dr Hnay El Shaer, and the Drylands, Livelihoods and Gender Programme Manager; Ms Laila Annouri, who reviewed the two documents in order to ensure the high translation standards.

Free online course on the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems re-opening on 5th of October

Deakin University and IUCN in partnership developed a free open online course on the FutureLearn platform: IUCN Red List of Ecosystems: The Global Standard for Assessing Risks to Ecosystems. In its first 3 months, the course had over 3000 enrolled learners from 142 countries, from a diverse range of back grounds including conservation professionals, research scientists, university students and even high school students. The course is closed for 6 weeks for revision and updating, and will re-open on October 5th, where it will remain open and available until the end of 2021. For more information and to enrol, click here. 

New website for exploring Earth’s Ecosystems

A new website enabling users to explore the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology will be launched in October-November. The website enables users to navigate through the hierarchy of the typology, to examine text descriptions, conceptual models, global distribution maps and stunning photographic images of forests, savannas and grasslands, mountains, caves, wetlands, rivers, lakes, shorelines, reefs, marine sandplains, pelagic ocean waters and the deep sea floor. The website also has a mapping application, enabling users to explore spatial statistics for areas of interest, such as countries.

First regional webinar on Nature-based Solutions. Spotlight on the Western Balkans.

Featuring distinguished regional speakers, the webinar on Thursday, 1 October at 10 am CET will provide an overview of the major challenges faced by Western Balkan countries and highlight opportunities for Nature-based Solutions to reduce disaster risks and adapt to climate change. It will demonstrate existing initiatives and applicable solutions in the region, offering insight into a new IUCN project funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) - ADAPT: Nature-based Solutions for resilient societies in the Western Balkans. 

Register and save the date. The link to the online event will be available closer to the date, followed by more information on the agenda and speakers. Should you have any questions before the next invite, please do not hesitate to contact: Kristin.Meyer@iucn.org or Vesna.Bjedov@iucn.org.

Andrade A., Zambrana-Torrelio C., Vasseur L., Nelson C., Carver S. & I. Convery. 2020. Rewilding for human health. The Ecologist. The Journal for the Post-Industrial Age. 

Dhyani Shalini, Gupta Anil Kumar, Karki Madhav (Eds.). 2020. Nature-based Solutions for Resilient Ecosystems and Societies. Springer Nature Series: Disaster Resilience and Green Growth. For details visit this link.  

IUCN World Conservation Congress 2020 postponed

In light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Government of France have decided to postpone the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2020. 

For more information