Ibero-American ministers agree on a declaration to provide a joint response to the climate change and biodiversity crises

In the framework of COP27

Ministers agreed that, as science indicates, increasing biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation are key risks for all regions without exception.

Vice President Ribera said that “to date, these environmental crises have addressed these challenges independently, but they can only be solved if they are addressed together”

The declaration reflects the urgency of achieving ambitious and quantified results, both at COP27 on climate change and at the next COP15 on biodiversity

The Vice President and Minister for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Teresa Ribera, has participated in a meeting with the ministers of the Ibero-American Network of Climate Change Offices (RIOCC), to which Spain belongs. At the meeting, which was held in Sharm El-Sheikh within the framework of the XXVII Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP27), the leaders present at the meeting adopted a declaration to act urgently against biodiversity loss and climate change.

Ministers agreed that, as science indicates, the increasing loss of biodiversity and the degradation of ecosystems, which have been accelerated by climate change, are already key risks for all regions without exception. They therefore believe that an integrated approach is essential to halt biodiversity loss, land degradation and climate change.

In this sense, Ribera has expressed that “to date, the vast majority of policies for these environmental crises have been developed independently, but they can only be resolved if they are addressed together.”

Therefore, said the vice president, “we wanted to propose a Declaration of the ministers of the RIOCC to unite our voices and point out that this decade represents a critical window to address these interdependent crises.”

The Declaration also highlights the importance of achieving ambitious results at COP27 and COP15 on Biodiversity, to be held next month in Montreal, and that translate into quantified objectives and adequate financing, as this will result in greater success of both policies.

It also highlights the importance of nature-based solutions, which should be conceived as transformative solutions that promote the resilience of natural ecosystems, preserving their multiple contributions to the societies that depend on them.

Likewise, emphasis has been placed on the commitment to strengthen regional cooperation actions that address both challenges in an integrated manner, taking into account the broad portfolio of policies, measures, experiences and tools already existing in the region.

MEET BIODIVERSITY TARGETS

The ministers also conveyed the plans and policies they are putting in place to meet various biodiversity objectives, being aware of the important role it has to ensure a constant flow of ecosystem services to society, including climate regulation, soil protection, food security, the protection of our health, cultural and identity values, among others.

Finally, during the meeting, it was recalled that this ministerial impulse is fundamental to continue advancing in the Ibero-American Environmental Agenda and, more specifically, in the Ibero-American Environmental Charter, with the leadership of the Dominican Republic as the Pro-Tempore Secretariat, for approval at the next Summit of Heads of State in Santo Domingo scheduled for March 2023.

LEARN ABOUT CHALLENGES AND EXPERIENCES IN IBERO-AMERICA

The Ibero-American Network of Climate Change Offices (RIOCC) was created in 2004 by the Ibero-American Forum of Ministers of the Environment with the main objective of maintaining a permanent fluid dialogue to better understand the priorities, challenges and experiences of Ibero-American countries. INOCC has become one of the most consolidated networking initiatives in the region, where the exchange of experiences and the strengthening of institutions has been a priority from the beginning. RIOCC includes climate change offices in 22 countries: Andorra, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Spain, Uruguay and Venezuela

The Spanish Office for Climate Change (OECC) has assumed since its inception the role of Secretariat of the RIOCC carrying out the tasks of coordination and organization of the different activities.

Source: Miteco