Regreening the Planet one at a time please

Considering everything from regulated whaling to Sustainable Development to soil conservation to benefit sharing mechanism to indigenous peoples’ rights to Climate Change Adaptation, Human Wildlife Conflict Mitigation and more … all within the paradigms of Equitable growth, CITES, Human Rights, gender equality, Climate resilience, poverty eradication, gender sensitive land rights, are on the table at the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity in Cali Colombia, it certainly does not hurt to lend sharper focus to the Convention.

The effort has been to focus sharply on SDGs 14, 15 and 17 for sure, but their corresponding targets and goals in themselves are a wide horizon. But what cannot be ignored is that if Humanity ignores Biodiversity Conservation Desertification will expand, threatening lives, livelihoods, food security and it will lead to irreversible damage to Planet Earth which is home to endangered fauna… whose habitat has been wantonly destroyed by adamant Humanity refusing to adapt to Mother Nature. In the process the lives of critically endangered fauna is at stake. These endangered fauna have nowhere to go, and for no mistake of theirs. have been decimated.

It does not make any logical sense for a conflict tiger attack survivor in India to continue to live in abject poverty cheek by jowl with wildlife just because he has no means of survival outside his wretched straw hut in tiger terrain.

Biodiversity hotspots should be managed such that biodiversity thrives and the hotspot tag should be taken off. That is the priority, otherwise entire Humanity is going to be food starved. Such is the critical role of Biodiversity. Green activists have always forewarned this but doomsday propheteering has fatigued the people on the planet. UNEP needs the Media to wash this cynicism and resurge inspiration to re-green the planet.