ISSUE 1 30 MAY 2006 <G::CL::@96>AN 8=6C<>C<DJG7:=6K>DJG EDITORIAL The circle of life Green Week gets “It is truly a wonderful fact that all animals and all plants throughout all time and space are related to each other” – Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species. top backing When the famous natural scientist penned these words nearly 150 The national presidents of four EU Member States have sent a personal message to the participants and years ago, it was in the spirit of ex- cited revelation: a man fascinated organisers of Green Week, wishing “perseverance and success” to everyone involved. The initiative shows by his own discovery of the close- the growing infl uence of this event in setting the agenda for environmental action at the highest level. knit interrelationship between liv- ing things – whether depending The presidents of Hungary, Austria, that are under way to solve them of public personalities, in Eur ope expresses his appreciation of the on neighbouring species for food, Finland and Lithuania welcome the deserve every attention and sup- and worldwide, are beginning to European Commission’s “manifold shelter and survival or evolving choice of theme for Green Week 2006 port of international institutions regard nature protection as a cen- activities” in this area, and especial- one into another over centuries. – biodiversity – and express their and governments as well.” tral objective. President Sólyom ly of the Green Week programme. countries’ appreciation and support The same remains true today, but for the work of all those engaged in Changes needed the background is different. For we the struggle to preserve “the integrity are slowly coming to realise that of nature in Europe and worldwide”. The four leaders highlight the com- we are at risk of unpicking that They praise, in particular, the volun- ing relaunch of the EU’s Sustainable complex web: destroying a mam- tary work undertaken by citizens and Development Strategy, and call for mal here, a plant species there, an non-governmental organisations at both communities and individuals to entire habitat perhaps, as a result both EU and global level. make fundamental changes in their of our own lifestyle. attitudes and behaviour in order to In their message, László Sólyom of safeguard humanity’s natural sup- We are exhausting natural re- Hungary, Heinz Fischer of Austria, port system “for our sake and for sources: logging trees for industry Tarja Halonen of Finland and Valdas the sake of future generations”. or to create grazing land, fl attening Adamkus of Lithuania describe the countryside to make way for roads 2010 target for halting biodiversity In a letter to EU Environment Com- and houses, hunting down animals loss in the EU as both “necessary” missioner Stavros Dimas, the Hun- for food or medicinal uses. And we and “ambitious”. “The problems in garian President describes it as are changing the natural climate this fi eld and also all those efforts “heartening” that a growing number in which biodiversity survives. Today’s Green Week opening ses- sion talks about ‘Finding the bal- ance’, and throughout the week, participants will be looking for ways to combine human needs and aspirations with the survival Climate of change of the natural world we depend on. The 188 countries that signed up to the UN Convention on Biological for biodiversity Diversity showed their determin- ation to take action, and the EU From taking on climate change in 2005, Green Week has a leading role to play. is now set to tackle what many are describing as the Extinction is forever, and as part planet’s biggest challenge... biodiversity loss. of that intertwined web of life on Earth we are endangering our own survival every time a species is The top message Green Week The Earth’s panoply of species, Photo: IUCN Red List (www.iucnredlist.org), Robert & Carolyn Buchanan Robert & Carolyn (www.iucnredlist.org), IUCN Red List Photo: crushed, whether in the Amazon would like to communicate to the habitats and gene types forms Basin or on the local river bank. thousands of delegates attending the web of life on which we all But we can stop it if we act fast. Life the sixth edition is that the rapid depend, providing clean air and is a circle and we are part of it. degradation and destruction of water, fuels, materials and much our planet’s biological diversity more. And yet it is being abused, Polar bears are now on the IUCN Red List of vulnerable species. What’s next? (or biodiversity) is not someone degraded and fra gmented on else’s problem. It is our responsi- a daily basis. Human activities Intensive agriculture and in- to extend it to maritime habitats as bility to halt the loss because, as are driving natural habitats to dustry, urban sprawl, pollution, well, but more needs to be done. this year’s catch phrase so aptly the brink. Species are being lost alien plant and animal species, puts it, ‘Biodiversity is life!’. forever. and climate change are push- More has to be done ing Europe’s natural habitats and vulnerable species to their limits. “The threat of loss of biodiversity Around half of Europe’s wetlands is bigger than climate change if CONTENTS How heavy is your ‘ecological footprint’? and grasslands are threatened, we consider that, once a species Learn more on page 3. while some 40% of mammals are is lost, no mitigation measure considered endangered, includ- can help to bring it back,” noted ing the brown bear, Arctic fox and Stavros Dimas, European Com- Finding the right balance 2 marine mammals like dolphins. missioner for Environment, dur- Europe’s birds and butterfl ies and ing this year’s meeting of signa- many reptile and amphibian spe- tories to the UN Convention of Europe needs good cies are not fairing any better. Biodiversity (CBD). ®® eco-citizens 2 Europe’s advanced development leaves few areas of ‘untouched’ Meeting the CBD’s goals 3 nature. Creating parks and re- serves, such as Natura 2000 sites Green groups out in force 4 covering nearly 20% of EU terri- tory, does help protect biodiver- sity, and discussion is under way 1 Nature’s balancing act – when is payback time? Finding a balance between exploiting our natural resources to achieve social and Commission European Photo: economic growth, and conserving and protecting those same resources in order to ensure our future existence – that will be the focus of discussions at today’s ‘Opening Session’ which brings together an impressive panel of high-profi le and Opening the debate, EU Com- An interconnected world the international angle, highlighting missioner for the Environment the issues involved in the protection Stavros Dimas will look at why There are many reasons why we of biodiversity in developing coun- biodiversity matters, why the need to protect biodiversity – eth- tries and the need for serious sci- loss of biodiversity represents a ical, moral, cultural or economic. entifi c advancement in this fi eld. global crisis, and what the EU is One clear message to emerge is doing in response – in particular, that these are all closely inter- Tip of the iceberg the Commission’s just published linked and need to be tackled on a Communication on Biodiversity global scale. The intrepid Belgian explorer Alain which sets out the concrete ac- Hubert will share his experiences Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas says biodiversity tions that need to be taken to Vaclav Havel, former leader of the on his expeditions to both the North loss has irreversible consequences. achieve the goal of halting bio- Czech Republic, author and polit- and South Poles. In his presenta- diversity loss by 2010. ical activist, will look at the links tion ‘Polar biodiversity and climate between biodiversity and society, in change’, Hubert will talk about the globalisation and the demands of involved. Bernard Tramier, director Commissioner Dimas has long particular the infl uence of nature in accelerating meltdown of the Arctic the developing world. No stranger of the ‘Total’ Corporate Foundation been convinced of the serious- social values and civil society. Havel ice cap and the disaster this could to environmental issues, Lamy has for Biodiversity and the Sea will talk ness of the challenge before us. is co-founder of the global think-tank spell for polar biodiversity. recently urged WTO members to about the role of industry and how Speaking at the recent high-level Forum 2000 which, for the past fi ve pursue “more forcefully” the envir- a large, multinational oil company ministerial meeting of the Con- years, has been bringing to gether Weighing the cost onmental dimension of the Doha is dealing with the challenge. vention on Biological Diversity leading personalities to discuss Round, noting the possible benefi ts (CBD), he noted that, “while cli- issues of pressing global importance. Pascal Lamy, new director-general of environmental goods and ser- Brussels-based TV journalist Alex mate change is the clear and pres- of the World Trade Organisation, vices and a closer relationship be- Puissant will moderate the session ent danger ... biodiversity loss is Also joining the debate will be Achim will join the debate by videolink from tween WTO rules and multilateral which promises to be both lively an even more serious threat. [No] Steiner, former director-general of Geneva. Lamy will provide a global environmental agreements. and thought-provoking. matter what mitigation measures the World Conservation Union and trade perspective on the issue of we take, species loss can never recently elected executive director biodiversity, and the need to bal- If we are really to tip the balance in be reversed ... extinction cannot of the United Nations Environment ance environmental considerations favour of our planet, then economic be undone.” Programme.