There is no doubt about the growing momentum and acceleration of global action to confront climate change. Global carbon emissions must be halved in the next decade to avoid catastrophic impacts from global warming. The recent UN Climate Action Summit in New York recognized the critical role of Nature Based Solutions to address this emergency. The protection and restoration of living ecosystems such as forests and wetlands is moving into the center of the global discussion as a solution to adapt to and mitigate climate change. As we seek to decarbonize our economies and make our way of living sustainable, appreciating and valuing the role wetlands can play is critical. The implementation of the Ramsar Convention is needed, now more than ever. It is clear that to achieve the aims of the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals, wetland interventions must be scaled up; integrating wetland conservation, wise use, and restoration into sustainable development and climate change policies across all societal sectors. The Secretariat has continued its engagement with a range of fora to elevate action for the role of wetlands not only in climate mitigation and adaptation, but also for the myriad other benefits they provide. A main process in this regard is the ongoing work to develop a global biodiversity framework to replace the current Aichi biodiversity targets, which expire in 2020. Contracting Parties have prioritized action on this front to ensure that this new post-2020 framework leverages the work of the biodiversity-related conventions such as the Ramsar Convention to avoid duplication and maximize impact to reverse biodiversity loss. In this context, during the past months we engaged in key events and processes such as 25th Senior Officials Meeting of the United Nations Environment Management Group, the Open Ended Working Group on the Post 2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, the Biodiversity Liaison Group and other biodiversity related sessions, World Water Week and UNCCD COP14. We are also preparing for the UNFCCC COP26 in Chile, also known as the Blue COP given the attention to water, seas and oceans and for next year’s UN Oceans Conference. I hope we can all build on this growing momentum to increase the recognition of the critical values wetlands provide as the most endandered ecosystem, but also as one that can significantly contribute to reaching the global ambition to reverse biodiversity loss, tackle climate change and achieve sustainable development for all. Martha Rojas Urrego |
