Nature is the victim of global warming, and its protective features can do little against unchecked temperature rise, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said.
MONTREAL, Dec 17 (The CONNECT) - India has called for “mindful and deliberate utilization, instead of mindless and destructive consumption to conserve the global biodiversity.
It is in this context that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the Mission LiFE which is a mass movement towards an environmentally conscious lifestyle, said Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav.
He was delivering India’s National Statement at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP 15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) at Montreal, Canada.
Yadav said the Global Biodiversity Framework must be designed in the light of science and equity, and the sovereign right of nations over their resources, as provided for in the Convention on Biodiversity. If climate is profoundly linked to biodiversity, then the principle of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities must equally apply to biodiversity, he pointed out.
The value of biodiversity to humankind also lies in its economic dimension alongside the cultural and social. Sustainable use and access and benefit sharing are key to promoting biodiversity, alongside the efforts to conserve, protect and restore, he said and pointed out that “modern technologies, especially information technology, can assist our goals”. Hence the Digital Sequencing Information must be linked to access and benefit sharing in a just and fair manner.
“When nature itself is under stress because of the historical disproportionate and iniquitous GHG emissions of the developed countries, Nature-based solutions to global warming and other environmental challenges are not an answer without resolute action by developed countries to measure up to their historical and current responsibilities,” he said.
Nature cannot protect if it is not itself protected. Nature is the victim of global warming, and its protective features can do little against unchecked temperature rise, Yadav argued.
“We cannot only conserve, preserve and restore,” he declared and called for promotion of sustainable use and it is in this context that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s clarion call for a people’s movement centred on LiFE - Lifestyle for Environment launched on 20th October 2022 at Ekta Nagar in Gujarat in the presence of UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres assumes significance, the Minister said.
He pointed out that India has taken numerous steps to keep Invasive Alien Species at bay. But a numerical target is not feasible without the necessary baseline and relevant scientific evidence.
“India looks forward to fruitful deliberations that will preserve and enhance our natural heritage that our ancestors and traditions have provided us,” Yadav said.
“We are but merely custodian of Planet Earth and our bounden duty is to further enrich the rich biodiversity of Mother Earth, restore its pristine glory and hand it over to the next generation for the benefit of one and all - mankind, nature and all life forms.” He added.
