Biodiversity Summit Newsletter Highlights - 15 October 2014

Integration, cooperation, passion and commitment: 2014 Biodiversity Summit spurs the integration of biodiversity into all levels of government

The knowledge-packed Biodiversity Summit for Cities and Subnational Governments held in parallel with the CBD COP 12 on 12-14 October in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province has just concluded, inspiring greater cooperation among all levels of government and furthering the work on promoting biodiversity for sustainability. Organized by ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability and the hosts, Government of Gangwon Province, in collaboration with the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Summit saw close to 600 participants from 53 countries across all regions. Around 270 local government representatives participated in the Summit, including 40 city and subnational leaders (governors, mayors, deputy mayors, and commissioners) as well as representatives of national, international and UN organizations, and experts in the field. 

IN FOCUS: The Gangwon / Pyeongchang Resolution for Cities and Subnational Governments

The Gangwon / Pyeongchang Resolution for Cities and Subnational Governments  demonstrates the spirit of cooperation between cities and national governments to jointly safeguard urban biodiversity. This resolution will be submitted on behalf of local and sub-national governments to the CBD and aims to concretize support to the SDG process, specifically on the proposed stand-alone goals of the urban SDG (Goal 11) and on biodiversity conservation (Goal 15). “Through this, the willingness and commitment of the subnational governments around the world will be heard loud and clear at the High Level Segment during COP 12,” emphasized Yeonman Jeong, Vice Minister of Environment for the Republic of Korea.

Photo highlights from the Summit

Best quotes and tweets from the Summit!

The Gangwon/Pyeongchang Resolution is a strong and innovative statement, built on this strong foundation of dialogue, and a united voice from yourselves, that we are proud of, and we fully support the Honourable Governor Moonsoon Choi as he is elected to present the Resolution to the high-level segment of the CBD COP.
David Cadman, ICLEI President

We need good ideas from everyone including the Biodiversity Summit and the engagement of cities and subnational governments in Pyeongchang to help us build on the good success stories out there. There are many success stories, but, we need to scale up. We need to multiply those success stories to more cities, to more subnational governments.
Braulio Ferreira Diaz de Souza, CBD Executive Secretary

Cities as centers of lifestyle and creativity are the location of our educational facilities. We need to create the right kind of citizenry to spur responsible consumption.
Pavan Sukhdev, Special Advisor and Head of UNEP’s Green Economy Initiative (TEEB)

It's time that biodiversity is put front and center on the international stage so that we can stop the mass extinction of species on the global scale. I know in my position as a Mayor, I can make a difference, and so can you.
Troy Pickard, Mayor of Jondaloop, Australia

Gangwon Province contains some of the most valuable ecological assets in Korea, and the 2014 Biodiversity Summit for Cities and Subnational Governments provides a global platform for recognition, with the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) and Bakdudaegan Mountain Range deserving special mention.
Monsoon Choi, Governor of Gangwon Province, Republic of Korea

Cities are complicated ecosystems. It is finding the intersection between knowledge and need that allows us to obtain the information we need to build the cities we want (livable, sustainable and resilient). How can we relate the idea of the green city to the just city? It comes down to asking people what it is they want!
David Maddox, Chair of URBISInitiative and Founder of @TNatureofCities

Through the Gangwon Resolution, the willingness and commitment of the subnational governments around the world will be heard loud and clear at the High Level Segment during COP 12.
Yeonman Jeong, Vice Minister of Environment for the Republic of Korea.

With this Summit, we hope to contribute to the global discussions on biodiversity, and most importantly, provide the necessary leadership for local and subnational governments to transform their cities into sustainable and biodiverse cities.
Yeon-hee Park, ICLEI Korea Director

Working together with different levels of government makes a lot of sense because ultimately, we are all striving for the same goal - a world where our invaluable natural resources are conserved and used sustainably and biodiversity is respected and integrated into decision making to ensure sustainable development.
Shela Patrickson, ICLEI BiodiverCities Center Manager

This Summit is a particularly important platform to advance our goals. The context is about as appropriate as we could wish for, with almost all of the national governments of this planet negotiating how to guide policy just next door. So to reiterate the message from the Executive Secretary of the CBD, Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias: please challenge yourselves and others at this meeting. Use it as a milestone in the story of your city, subnational government, organization or country, and be inspired and encouraged by the interaction with like-minded individuals.
Andre Mader, ICLEI's seconded staff member to the CBD