CBD COP 13: 5th Global Biodiversity Summit of Cities & Subnational Governments

The opening session will provide introductions and set the scene and tone for the event as a whole. Participants will be welcomed by the hosts and partners of the 5^th Global Biodiversity Summit of Cities and Subnational Governments. A short ceremony will signify the handover from the previous hosts in South Korea to the current hosts in Mexico. An overview and outline of the Biodiversity Summit will be provided, including an introduction to the draft Quintana Roo Communiqué on Local Subnational Governments for Biodiversity, to be adopted on the 11^th of December and presented to the CBD COP President in the Plenary during Week 2 of the CBD COP13. Additionally, the goals and context of the 2016 Biodiversity Summit will be outlined.

Chair:

• Oliver Hillel – Programme Officer, Sustainable Use, Tourism and Island Biodiversity, Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity

Panelists:

• Honorable Remberto Estrada Barba, Municipal president of Benito Juarez/ Cáncun, Quintana Roo, México
• Councillor Cathy Oke, GEXCOM Biodiversity Portfolio, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability
• Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias – Convention on Biological Diversity Executive Secretary (CBD)
• Honorable Miguel Ángel Mancera – Vice Chair ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability Global Executive Committee, Mayor of Mexico City, México
• His Excellency Enrique González Tiburcio – Under-minister of Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development, México

• His Excellency Sung Kyu Maeng – Vice Governor of Gangwon Provincial Government, Korea.
• His Excellency Carlos Manuel Joaquín González, Governor of Quintana Roo, México
• His Excellency Carlos Manuel Joaquín González, Governor of Quintana Roo, México
• Rafael Pacchiano Alamán – Minister of Environment and Natural Resources- México

In the 21^st Century Governance of our biodiversity assets calls for new mechanisms of cooperation between all levels of government which need to challenge traditional distinctions between local, regional and national boundaries.  The Strategic Plan for Biodiversity is fundamentally relevant to these local and subnational actors and its implementation can only be enabled through vertical and horizontal integration of biodiversity across sectors within and between all governance levels.

Chairs:

• Oliver Hillel – Programme Officer, Sustainable Use, Tourism and Island Biodiversity, Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity
• Kobie Brand – Regional Director ICLEI Local governments for Sustainability and Global Director of the ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center

Panelists:

• Speaker 1: Cuauhtémoc Ochoa Fernández – Undersecretary of Development and Environmental Regulation, Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT), México
• Speaker 2: Trevor Sandwith – Director of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Global Protected Areas Programme
• Speaker 3: Patrick Beauchesne – Assistant Deputy Minister for Sustainable development and Environment Quality, Ministry of Sustainable development, Environment and the Fight against Climate Change, Government of Quebec, Canada
• Speaker 4: Amy Ann Fraenkel – Head of Division Mainstreaming, Cooperation & Outreach Support, Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity
• Speaker 5: His Excellency Sung-kyu Maeng – Vice Governor, Gangwon Provincial Government, Republic of Korea (Host of the 4th Biodiversity Summit for Cities and Subnational Governments 2014)
• Speaker 6: Councilor Cathy Oke: ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability (Global Executive Committee Member and Head of ICLEI Biodiversity Portfolio), Councillor from the City of Melbourne, Australia

Presentations:

Cuauhtémoc Ochoa Fernández

Trevor Sandwith

His Excellency Sung-kyu Maeng

Local and subnational governments – and their growing communities – have the unique ability and imperative to take local action and thereby significantly scale up global efforts towards attainment of the sustainable development goals, including through cross-cutting and mainstreamed nature-based solutions and associated biodiversity-enhancing strategies, implementation plans and actions.

Chair:

• Mr. Rodrigo Messias – Policy Officer, Network of Regional Governments for Sustainable Development (Nrg4SD)

Panelists:

• Speaker 1: Haripriya Gundimeda – President of the International Network for Urban Biodiversity and Design (URBIO)
• Speaker 2: Li Yanxia – Senior Programme Officer at The International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR)
• Speaker 3: Penelope Komites – Assistant Mayor in charge of Green Spaces, Nature, Biodiversity and Funerals, Paris, France
• Speaker 4: Veronica Arias – Environmental Secretary of Ilustre Municipality of the Metropolitan District of Quito, Ecuador
• Speaker 5: Réal Ménard – Executive committee member in charge of sustainable development, the environment, large parks and green spaces, City of Montréal, Canada

Presentations:

Haripriya Gundimeda

Li Yanxia

Veronica Arias

Cities are drivers of innovation, intimately connected to our growing urban populations and able to pioneer solutions for setting the world on a different course in striving for sustainability. Yet how do we finance this opportunity?

Chair:

• Kobie Brand – Regional Director(Africa): ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability and Global Director of ICLEI’s Cities Biodiversity Center

Panelists:

• Andrew Deutz – Director of International Government Relations at The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
• Mohamed Bakarr – Lead Environmental Specialist the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Secretariat – Programs Unit
• Honorable Claudia Maria Terzi – Minister for Environment, Energy and Sustainable Development, Region Lombardy, Italy

Mainstreaming biodiversity into land-use planning and development plans is essential for sustainability in a rapidly urbanising world.

Ecosystem services are vital for the survival of humankind, and nowhere else is this manifested more concretely than within our cities. Our rapidly growing urban population are reshaping those very ecosystems on which we depend for the most basic of our daily needs such as food, shelter and connectivity.

Chair:

• Councilor Cathy Oke – ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability Global Executive Committee Biodiversity Portfolio, Councilor from the City of Melbourne, Australia

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Kim Namchoon – Secretary General of the International Network for Urban Biodiversity and Design (URBIO)
• Speaker 2: Frank Michael Oliver Schmidt – Director General of Inter Projects, CONABIO México
• Speaker 3: Darlene Dove – Coordinator, Biodiversity and Species at Risk Stewardship, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Ontario, Canada
• Speaker 4: Andrew Rudd – Urban Environment Officer, UN-Habitat
• Speaker 5: Lena Chan – Group Director of the National Biodiversity Centre, National Parks Board, Singapore

Presentations:

Kim Namchoon

Andrew Rudd

Lena Chan

Trends in global urbanization, implications for biodiversity and ecosystem services, projected climate change impacts and the CBD agenda.

Ecosystem services are vital for the survival of humankind, and nowhere else is this manifested more concretely than within our cities. Our rapidly growing urban population are reshaping those very ecosystems on which we depend for the most basic of our daily needs such as food, shelter and connectivity.

Chair:

• Andrea Cruz-Angón – Coordinator Biodiversity Strategies and International Cooperation, CONABIO México

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Prof Thomas Elmqvist – Professor in Natural Resource Management at Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University
• Speaker 2: Andrea Erickson-Quiroz – Managing Director for Water Security at The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
• Speaker 3: Patricia Sithebe – Manager of the Department of Parks, Ekurhuleni Metro Municipality, South Africa
• Speaker 4: Martin Gutérrez Lacayo – The Executive Coordinator of The Environmental Commission of the Megalopolis of Mexico City (CAMe)

Presentations:

Prof Thomas Elmqvist

Andrea Erickson-Quiroz

Patricia Sithebe

Martin Gutérrez Lacayo

With more than half of the world’s population already living in cities and further growth expected, the health of urban dwellers is crucial to global well-being.

“We will catalyze and nurture new ways of working together to secure the right for all people to experience and be excited by nature and gain lifelong benefits for health and well-being from outdoor activities in varied and stimulating environments. We will seek to foster new leadership to conserve nature as the foundation for sustainability in an era of rapid global change.” –  The Salzburg Challenge for Nature, Health and a New Urban Generation, 2015, an initiative of IUCN and partners

Chair:

• Chantal van Ham – EU Programme Manager Nature Based Solutions at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Joel Paque – Senior Policy Advisor, Cities at The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
• Speaker 2: Gil (Guillermo) Penalosa – Director and Chair of the Board of 8 80 Cities and President of World Urban Parks
• Speaker 3: Michael Wong – International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) World Commission for Protected Areas, Vice Chair for North America
• Speaker 4: Balakrishna Pisupati – Head of Biodiversity, Land and Governance Programme with Division of Environmental Law and Conventions at United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP)

Presentations:

Joel Paque

Michael Wong

The ecological components of urbanised environments and the transformation of these landscapes to meet human needs, within city regions, has long been a discussion point. Cities provide opportunities for better urban natural asset management via innovation and collaboration between multiple stakeholders. Successful management of biodiversity and associated ecosystem services is critical to ensure sustainability and climate resilience.

Chair:

• Takashi Otsuka – Director, ICLEI- Local Governments for Sustainability, Japan Office

Speakers:

• Mariana Boy Tamborrell – Director General of Environmental Development, Urban and Tourism at the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) México
• Ellika Hermansson Török – Senior Advisor and Communication Strategist for Swedbio at Stockholm Resilience Centre
• María Paz Jiménez Jiménez – Advisor of the National Institute of Housing and Urbanism, Costa Rica
• Suvarna Chandrappagari – Member Secretary Telanagana State Biodiversity Board, India

Presentations:

Mariana Boy Tamborrell

Ellika Hermansson Török

Suvarna Chandrappagari

Forests provide a diverse set of habitats which support the majority of the world’s terrestrial plant and animal species. Forests also directly bolster the livelihoods of more than 20% of the world’s human population through the provision of critical ecosystem services such as air purification, food, medicine timber and shelter. They also have the ability to buffer the impacts of climate change.

Chair:

• Mr. Rodrigo Messias – Policy Officer, Network of Regional Governments for Sustainable Development (Nrg4SD)

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Ms. Eva Muller – Director, Forestry Policy and Resource Division, Forestry Department, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
• Speaker 2: Ms. Karen Keenleyside – Climate change Advisor at Parks Canada
• Speaker 3: Ms. Li Yanxia – Senior Officer of Global Programmes at the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR)
• Speaker 4: Mr. Alejandro Murat Hinojosa – Oaxaca State Governor, México
• Speaker 5: Ms. Martina Muller – International Affairs Advisor, São Paulo State Secretariat for the Environment, Brazil

Presentations:

Eva Muller

Karen Keenleyside

Li Yanxia

This session is focussed on the multiple opportunities and benefits of underpinning tourism with natural assets and ecosystem services at local and regional levels. Integrating nature into economic and social development strategies of cities and regions has proven to drive local economies, improve quality of life and add cumulative and cross-sectoral environmental benefits. As recognised in the CBD context, tourism strengthens the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and environment and can provide quality jobs, investment and development to improve the people’s living standards, including local communities and indigenous peoples, as well as enrich the experience and knowledge of biodiversity for the visitor.

Chair:

• Thomas Elmqvist – Professor in Natural Resource Management at Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Nelson Devanadera – Executive Director, Palawan Council for Sustainable Development, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan Province, Philippines
• Speaker 2: Councilor Johannes van der Merwe – Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
• Speaker 3: Marisol Vanegas Pérez – Quintana Roo State Minister of Tourism & Mr. Gonzalo Merediz Alonso – Executive Director of Amigos de Sian K´an, Cancún, México
• Speaker 4: Sanghyun Kim – Director of Gangwon Provincial Government, Republic of Korea
• Speaker 5: Roberto Benjamin Cabral Bowling – General Director of Planning, Secretariat of Tourism (SECTUR), México

Presentations:

Nelson Devanadera

Councilor Johannes van der Merwe

Marisol Vanegas Pérez

Sanghyun Kim

Roberto Benjamin Cabral Bowling

The agricultural and fisheries sectors have been the cornerstone of human development for centuries. As human societies continue along the trajectory of increasing technological advancements, and as our finite natural resource base declines in the face of burgeoning human populations, primary economic and subsistence activities such as fishing and agriculture face an increasingly uncertain future.

Chair:

• Oliver Hillel – Programme Officer, Sustainable Use, Tourism and Island Biodiversity, Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Einar Topiltzin Contreras – State Minister, Sustainable Development Morelos, México
• Speaker 2: Rhodri Asby – Deputy Director for Environment and Rural Affairs, Government of Wales
• Speaker 3: Kobie Brand – Regional Director ICLEI Local governments for Sustainability and Global Director of the ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center
• Speaker 4: Chan Kinfung – Assistant Director for Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Hong Kong
• Speaker 5: Marco Herrera – Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA), México

Presentations:

Einar Topiltzin Contreras

Rhodri Asby

Kobie Brand

Chan Kinfung

Marco Herrera

A delicate balance exists between the productive sectors (agriculture, fisheries, forests, and tourism etc.), development and sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services in cities and regions, with a special focus on optimal utilisation of ecosystem services. The concept of ecosystem services is currently enjoying massive attention globally, as the need to manage and conserve ecological infrastructure is becoming increasingly important in the ever changing climate. Adequate biodiversity management strategies are essential towards ensuring continued provision of sustainable ecosystem services by ecological infrastructure and promote a landscape connectivity approach as the basis for managing biodiversity and building landscape resilience to climate change.

Chair:

• Lena Chan – Group Director of the National Biodiversity Centre, National Parks Board, Singapore

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Pedro Alvarez Icaza- Program of Biological Corridors, CONABIO, México
• Speaker 2: Helene Roumani – Director, Jerusalem Bioregion, Israel
• Speaker 3: Denis Landenbergue – Freshwater Programme Coordinator at WWF International
• Speaker 4: Felipe Marcelino Chumpí – President, Morona Santiago Province, Ecuador
• Speaker 5: João Marcos Bertoldi – Government Manager, State Secretariat for Water, Environment Resources, Infrastructure, Cities and Metropolitan Affairs of Goias – SECIMA, Government of Goias, Brazil
• Speaker 6: Humberto Delgado Rosa – Director for Natural Capital, DG Environment, European Commission

Presentations:

Pedro Alvarez Icaza

Helene Roumani

Denis Landenbergue

Felipe Marcelino Chumpí

The horizontal and vertical integration of biodiversity management and conservation at different governance levels and across disciplines and sectors.

The sustainability, resilience and liveability of cities is fundamentally dependent on ecosystem health. In addition, biodiversity offers concrete, systemic and profitable solutions to cumulative and unprecedented developmental challenges. Planning and development plans at national, regional and city level must reflect these interconnected relationships. Coordination of collective efforts at all three levels of governments (vertical) and across different sectors (horizontal) is pivotal for achieving global, national, regional and local biodiversity targets. The role each level of government and sector plays in holistic management approaches especially in terms of their interconnected dependence on cross boundary natural assets is crucial for climate resilience and sustainability in future.

Chair:

• Rodrigo Messias – Policy Officer, Network of Regional Governments for Sustainable Development (Nrg4SD)

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Hector Cruz Albores – Municipal President of Ocosingo, Chiapas, México
• Speaker 2: Sara Pont Gasau – Head of the Unit for Natural Environment, Government of Catalonia
• Speaker 3: Alexander Boto Bastegieta – Director of Natural Habitat and Environmental Planning, Basque Country Government
• Speaker 4: Carine Bernède – Director of Green spaces and Environment of the City of Paris, France
• Speaker 5: Daniel Hodder – Division Chief, strategies, policies and programs, Great parks and greening, City of Montréal, Canada
• Speaker 6: Steve Hounsell – Chair of the Ontario Biodiversity Council, Ontario Canada

Presentations:

Hector Cruz Albores

Sara Pont Gasau

Alexander Boto Bastegieta

Carine Bernède

Steve Hounsell

How can cities and subnational governments measure their contributions and achievements in biodiversity conservation for sustainability? This session focusses on the need for documenting and reporting on biodiversity.

Over the last decades, the focus has shifted significantly to measurable, verifiable and reportable developmental commitments. M&E processes and methodologies, tools, frameworks and indicators for measuring what we do better are entrenched in global agreements, and the Aichi targets, the TEEB tools and recently the SDG targets are in many ways frontrunners in this space. The question remains whether these tools and approaches are adequately mainstreamed and taken up as part of standard nationally required reporting processes for cities and regions.

Chair:

• Ms Kobie Brand – Global Director – ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center.

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Stephen Casselman – Manager, Biodiversity and Species at Risk Protection, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Ontario Canada.
• Speaker 2: Wendy Yap Hwee Min – Director of International Relations at the National Biodiversity Centre National Parks Board, Singapore
• Speaker 3: Chantal van Ham – EU Programme Manager Nature Based Solutions at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
• Speaker 4: Maria Schewenius – Research Coordinator and Project Manager at the Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC)

Presentations:

Stephen Casselman

Wendy Yap Hwee Min

Chantal van Ham

The role of cities and regions towards the management and conservation of biodiversity through creative and innovative actions and the implications these strategies and actions have for sustainability and climate resilience.

In this session, we will highlight innovative practices that can be lessons for others.  Cities and regions are often trying out new ideas and would benefit from sharing these ideas with one another.  The ability to replicate good ideas and refine them for future use is essential to achieving sustainability.  It will allow a faster adoption of new practices and also refine the application of ideas to their more applicable contexts.  We will hear from leaders in three cities, Bonn, Melbourne, and Cape Town, one province, Morona Santiago (Ecuador), and one interagency, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) about their experiences and what they have learned from innovative practice.

Chair:

• Jennifer Rae Pierce – urban biodiversity planner and PhD student at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.

Speakers:

• Speaker 1: Susanne Nolden – International Affairs and Global Sustainability, City of Bonn, Germany
• Speaker 2: Councilor Cathy Oke – The City of Melbourne, Australia and ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability Global Executive Committee Biodiversity Portfolio
• Speaker 3: Felipe Marcelino Chumpí – President, Morona Santiago Province, Ecuador
• Speaker 4: Mohamed Bakarr – Senior Environmental Specialist at the Global Environment Facility (GEF)
• Speaker 5: Julia Wood – Manager: Biodiversity Management at City of Cape Town, South Africa

Presentations:

Susanne Nolden

Councilor Cathy Oke

Felipe Marcelino Chumpí

Julia Wood

Session led by CONABIO.

Mainstreaming NBSAPs and achieving Aichi Targets

Speakers:

• Chair: Ms. Andrea Cruz-Angón – Coordinator Biodiversity Strategies and International Cooperation, CONABIO México
• Mr. Ariel Rojo – Director of Bioethics and Wildlife, Mexico City, México
• Mr. Eduardo Batllori –State Minister Yucatán, México
• Mr. Alfredo Arellano – State Environmental Minister, Quintana Roo, México
• Mr. Topiltzin Contreras – State Minister, Sustainable Development Morelos, México
• Ms. Karla Gasca – National institute for the development of municipalities, INAFED, Mexico

Presentations:

Ms. Andrea Cruz-Angón

Ariel Rojo

Eduardo Batllori

Alfredo Arellano

Topiltzin Contreras

Karla Gasca

Cities and regions are drivers of innovation, intimately connected to our growing urban populations and able to pioneer solutions for setting the world on a different course in striving for sustainability. Yet how do we finance this opportunity?

Chair:

• Cathy Oke – Councilor, City of Melbourne, Australia and ICLEI Global Portfolio Leader for Biodiversity.

Speakers:

• Roberto Troya – Vice President and Regional Director for Latin America and Caribbean, WWF, Quito, Ecuador
• Bonnie Keeler – Programme Director, The Natural Capital Project, USA
• Marcia Tambutti – Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL)

• ICLEI, SCBD and Partners: Global Community for local & regional action for nature- Based on the previous Global Partnership, this event presents a platform for cities to engage with SCBD, ICLEI and other partners to encourage collaboration, coordination and cooperation for joint initiatives.
• TNC & Yucatan Governors: Yucatán Península Governors, México, make an announcement on REDD+ initiative
• Mr. Sean Southey on behalf of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Commission on Education and Communication (CEC): Nature for All
• Ms. Pénélope Komitès, Deputy Mayor in charge of Green Spaces, Nature, Biodiversity, and Funeral Affairs, Mairie de Paris, France, and Mr. Réal Ménard, Executive Committee member in charge of Sustainable Development, the Environment, Large Parks, and Green Spaces, Ville de Montréal, Canada, call upon cities to take action for biodiversity, and join them in sharing good practices.
• His Excellency Governor Ohmura Hideaki – Governor of Aichi Prefecture, Japan and representatives: Group of Leading Subnational Governments toward Aichi Biodiversity Targets (GoLS to Aichi Targets)
• Nrg4SD and States: Nrg4SD BLP-SNG Launch: Biodiversity Learning Platform for Subnational Governments
• Mr. Cuauhtémoc Ochoa Fernández – Undersecretary of Development and Environmental Regulation, Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) – New Financial Model Of Municipal Systems of Integrated Waste Management with a Sustainability Approach
• Ms. Kobie Brand – Regional Director ICLEI Local governments for Sustainability and Global Director of the ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Center: Cities in Biodiversity Hotspots (INTERACT_Bio) and the Island Cities Community
• Mr Denis Landenbergue – Freshwater Programme Coordinator at WWF International: Wetland City Accreditation of the Ramsar Convention
• MoU signed: ICLEI and World Urban Parks (WUP)
• Ms. Ellika Hermansson Török – Senior Advisor and Communication Strategist for Swedbio at Stockholm Resilience Centre and Ms. Thea Buckle – Communication Officer at ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability and the Cities Biodiversity Center (CBC): Thrive – An App to re-connect people with nature

Presentations:

Aichi

Sean Southey

Pénélope Komitès & Réal Ménard

Nrg4SD

Cuauhtémoc Ochoa Fernández

Denis Landenbergue

Ellika Hermansson Török & Thea Buckle

Chair:

• Mr. Oliver Hillel – Programme Officer, Sustainable Use, Tourism and Island Biodiversity, Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity

Panelists:

• Mr. Alfredo Arellano – State Environmental Minister, Quintana Roo, México
• Mr. Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias – Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD)
• Dr. José Sarukhán – CONABIO, México
• Councilor Cathy Oke – ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability Global Executive Committee Biodiversity Portfolio, Councilor from the City of Melbourne, Australia