It's Two Minutes To Midnight; Let's Hold A Conference On Preserving Earth's Ability To Sustain Life
Humanity’s ongoing destruction of nature threatens the survival of our species, a group of former foreign ministers has warned, calling on leaders to step back from “the precipice” of irreversible ecological ruin and protect the planet.
The planet’s rapidly warming oceans must be the focus of increased conservation efforts due to their importance in producing oxygen and food for billions of people, the former ministers added, as governments prepare to begin negotiations for a Paris-style UN agreement on nature next week.
In a statement signed by 23 diplomats – including former US secretary of state Madeleine Albright and former British foreign secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind – world leaders are urged to back the draft UN agreement to protect almost a third of the world’s oceans and land. Next week’s meeting in Rome – originally scheduled to take place in Kunming, China but moved to the Italian capital in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak – will be the first time governments formally react to the 20-point proposals to halt and reverse biodiversity loss.
The current draft commits countries to protect 30% of the planet, introduce controls on invasive species, and reduce pollution from plastic waste and excess nutrients by 50%.
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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/18/world-leaders-urged-to-step-back-from-precipice-of-ecological-ruin-aoe
