Ecosystem and Biodiversity Bulletin

Issue No. 1, February 2017

Today, more of our natural world is at risk than ever before, compromising our ability to achieve

our Sustainable Development Goals. So our work is crucial to maintain diversity of life on earth for

human wellbeing. Conservation is not a choice, it is an imperative. In 2015 the Global Biodiversity

Outlook report noted that international efforts to meet specific targets set in order to stem the loss

of wildlife and habitats are failing. Former Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that it was time to

“redouble efforts to achieve our shared goals”. In 2016 we responded to this call to action and as

we work to address the most urgent conservation challenges at the largest scale, 2017 will be even

busier.

UNDP has a large ecosystems and biodiversity (EBD) portfolio in over 120 countries, financed by a

range of multilateral funds and donors including the Global Environment Facility (GEF). The EBD

projects support countries to optimise conservation and development benefits from protected

areas, integrating biodiversity concerns in development and fiscal planning and sector planning and

operation, empower local communities and indigenous peoples, and using nature-based

approaches to address and build resilience to changing climate. This effort is closely

complemented by a range of global UNDP initiatives, including the Equator Initiative and GEF Small

Grants Programme.

This newsletter has been designed to highlight our work to protect biodiversity and ecosystems,

improve lives and livelihoods, and build the strong institutions and strong nations needed to

engineer a resilient and diverse future.

Midori Paxton

Ecosystems and Biodiversity Team

Bureau of Policy and Programme Support

United National Development Programme

To unsubscribe, please write to: andrea.egan@undp.org

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Voices of Impact: Speaking for the Global Commons

Spanning 25 years of environmental

innovation for sustainable development, and

highlighting UNDP’s partnership with the GEF,

the stories in this anniversary

publication stand as evidence that our work to

protect the health of the planet is bringing

about real improvements in people’s lives and

changes in the way governments, businesses

and civil society think about the environment,

develop policies and do their work.

Read more...>

Silent Roar - UNDP and GEF in the Snow Leopard Landscape

Snow leopards draw attention to the issues

surrounding the decline of the species'

population as well as garnering support for

projects and initiatives to protect the animals

and their habitat. Projects target the issues at

multiple levels, from local, on-the-ground

interventions to regional and national

government policy reform, to efforts that

require international cooperation.

Read more...>

Biodiversity and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

This brief provides illustrative examples of

how biodiversity can play an essential role in

efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda for

Sustainable Development and the Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs). Details on the

linkages between biodiversity and each of the

SDGs are contained in the “Technical Note on

Biodiversity and the 2030 Agenda for

Sustainable Development”.

Read more...>

National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans: Natural Catalysts for Accelerating Action on Sustainable Development Goals

This document summarizes all of the actions

within 60 post-2010 National Biodiversity

Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs), and

shows their collective impact to Sustainable

Development Goals.

Read more...>

PHOTO ESSAYS

Silent Roar

In the world’s high places, there remains an animal rarely seen and almost never heard - the snow

leopard. This is the story of one of the world’s great cats, noteworthy for the fact that it does not roar.

But its conservation story, intricately linked with the landscapes and people, needs to be heard.

View photo essay...>

A Small Steppe; A Giant Leap

The Daurian Steppe lies at the nexus of the Mongolian, Russian and Chinese national borders. In the

Daursky Reserve, UNDP support is working to preserve what has been termed ‘the best and most

intact example of an undisturbed steppe ecosystem’.

View Photo essay...>

Defenders of Wildlife

In the dry dipterocarp forest ecosystems of southern Laos, efforts are being made to save species and

build sustainable livelihoods. With ecotourism blossoming and the critically endangered Eld's deer tripling

its population, this project is one to watch.

View Photo essay...>

To Serve and Protect

With its unique landscape, dotted with Lemurs, baobab trees, and chameleons, few places on earth are

as evocative – or as important - for biological diversity as Madagascar. Madagascar’s exceptional

endemism (with around 80% of Madagascar's wildlife found nowhere else on earth) is globally unique.

View Photo essay...>

Biodiversity for Well-being

From 3 to 17 December 2016, 8,000 delegates from around the world – hailing from governments, UN

agencies, non-profit organisations, the private sector, and local communities and indigenous peoples –

converged on Cancún, Mexico, to address these issues at the 13th UN Biodiversity Conference.

View Photo essay...>

OUR PERSPECTIVE

The fear factor: How a little alarm

protects tigers, landscapes – and us

"I had always dreamed of seeing wild tigers, and India was

the obvious choice. More than 70 percent of the estimated

3,800 remaining wild tigers live here." - Blog by Midori Paxton

Read more...>

A changing climate throws water

out of balance in Asia and the Pacific

"Water in the mountains, in the form of glaciers on the slopes

and towering peaks of the Himalayas, has been called the

“Water Tower of Asia,” feeding river basins that are home to

1.3 billion people. But with climate change, more and more of

this water is finding itself in the wrong place at the wrong

time." - Blog by Gordon Johnson

Read more...>

WORLD WETLANDS DAY

Small Island, Big Results, read more about

wetland restoration and preservation efforts in Cuba.

Precious Peatlands, read more about the work restoring the mires of Belarus, with benefits for biodiversity, people & climate

FOLLOW OUR GLOBAL INITIATIVES

Join our @UNDPbiofin #webinar on Engaging with #Foundations for #Biodiversity #Finance on 6th of February http://bit.ly/2jOxdfH — BIOFIN (@UNDPbiofin) February 4, 2017

At #COP13, @UNDP supported international efforts to conserve biodiversity for well-being: http://bit.ly/UNDPCOP13 — Equator Initiative (@equatorinit) January 27, 2017

Photo essay outlines @UNDP engagement at @UNBiodiversity #COP13 including @BESNet_UNDP web portal launch http://bit.ly/UNDPCOP13 — BES-Net (@BESNet_UNDP) February 2, 2017

Work in South Africa highlights how nature & livelihoods can function symbiotically #COP13 #CBDCOP13 @COP13MX: http://bit.ly/2f4McFi — NBSAP Forum (@NBSAPForum) December 5, 2016

FOLLOW OUR TEAM ON TWITTER

Eugenia Piza-Lopez @UNDP "full gender parity could contribute $28 trillion to global economy". Gender parity accelerates #SDGs — Jamison Ervin (@jamisonervin) February 1, 2017

Welcome news in protecting the magnificent #snowleopard - also see @UNDP @theGEFhttps://www.thegef.org/publications/silent-roar … — Paul Harrison (@ProtectWild) January 10, 2017

A changing climate throws water out of balance in Asia and the Pacific | @UNDPasiapac — Doley Tshering (@doleyt) November 4, 2016

Powerful work in #Belarus to prevent catastrophic fires by restoring #peatlands and protecting #biodiversity http://bit.ly/2jnUI0C — Midori Paxton (@MidoriPaxton) January 18, 2017

STARTING SOON

Between January 2016 and January 2017, 23 full project submissions (5 global and 17 national projects) were approved by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and other donors, and 31 project concepts approved. Here are snippets of seven selected projects about to start implementation: The global Strengthening human resources, legal frameworks and institutional capacities to implement the Nagoya Protocol project (5381) will provide technical support to 21 countries. The Global Adaptive Management and Learning for the Commodities Integrated Approach Programme (5665) is the framework project of the GEF-6 Commodities Integrated Approach Programme to be implemented in collaboration with a number of agencies including the World Bank, UNEP, WWF-US, Conservation International, comprising five child projects. The Programme aims to advance an integrated “supply chain” approach to tackling the underlying root causes of deforestation from agriculture commodities, such as beef, oil palm, and soy that together account for nearly 70% of deforestation globally. The Mauritius project (4843) will mainstream conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services into coastal zone management and into the operations and policies of the tourism and physical development sectors. The Transboundary Cooperation for Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Conservation (5413) is a

regional project that provides much needed coordination support and fostering south-south cooperation among the 12 snow leopard range countries under the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection

(GSLEP) Programme. The Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan projects are part of the 7 national projects which we are supporting towards achievement of the GSLEP goals. More details about this work can be found in Silent Roar.

This bulletin is produced by the Ecosystem and Biodiversity (EBD) team as part of UNDP’s Sustainable Development cluster within the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support. It provides an overview of UNDP’s EBD work in over 120 countries, managing around 400 projects on ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation. This quarterly bulletin includes updates on a range of topics including the status of on-going projects, new project approvals, performance indicators, project impacts and results, and noteworthy announcements. To unsubscribe to this newsletter, please write to: andrea.egan@undp.org

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