• by IPS Correspondents (nairobi)
• Saturday, December 24, 1994
• Inter Press Service

NAIROBI, Dic 24 (IPS) - The launching of an International Decade of Indigenous Peoples offers a valuable opportunity for a new partnership for sustainable development, says the head of the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP).

Elizabeth Dowdeswell, UNEP executive director, believes consultation and participation are essential to implementing provisions of a treaty on biodiversity. Making closing remarks at the end of the Conference of Parties (COP) of the Biodiversity Convention held recently in The Bahamas, she praised indigenous peoples.

"Indigenous peoples could be considered as the original sustainable environmentalists who have developed wise procedures and sustainable methods to protect their natural resources," she said.

In the coming year, the COP will take a closer look at the knowledge, innovations and practices of indigenous and local communities, among several other issues.

"Indigenous knowledge is, for us, a precious resource that must be drawn upon and respected," she added.

The Bahamas conference, held from Nov. 29 to Dec. 9, exhibited what was described as "the uncommon spirit of cooperation, persistence and dedication to advance the cause of the convention on biological diversity for present and future generations."

The first meeting of the 106 parties to that treaty, according to Dowdeswell, was attended by more than 700 participants from 133 states and a similar number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

This first meeting of the COP discussed how best to implement the treaty's provisions on the conservation of biological diversity, its sustainable use and the equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the use of genetic resources.

"The threat to species, genes and ecosystems has never been greater," said Dowdeswell. "There are indications that humanity is now on the eve of a new wave of massive extinctions."

The UNEP executive director pointed to the sense of urgency that parties and non-parties alike exhibited in addressing the issues on the extensive agenda.

© Inter Press Service (2014) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service

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