Biodiversity (Issues, Threats And Conservation)

The alluring diversity of life on earth, the biodiversity, is the basis of survival of human species on earth by ensuring the sustainability of basic life support systems. Nevertheless, biological diversity, the mesmerising diversity of life on earth, is disappearing at a disturbingly rapid pace. If we continue to destroy the environment, we will not only eliminate the basis of our future existence but also of our future economy. The United Nations has declared the year 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity (IYB) and 2011-2020 as UN Decade on Biodiversity to create awareness about the crucial importance of biodiversity to society, to communicate the human costs of biodiversity loss, and to enthuse people, particularly the youth, throughout the world in the fight to protect all life on Earth, thereby fulfilling the objective of significantly reducing the ongoing biodiversity loss. As a mega biodiversity country and as a country that campaign for conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, India has taken several initiatives for conserving the rich biodiversity heritage. Yet, a common platform to discuss the issues, challenges and opportunities in achieving the Biodiversity Target was lacking in the International Year of Biodiversity. The First Indian Biodiversity Congress (IBC 2010) organized jointly by the Centre for Innovation in Science and Social Action (CISSA), a partner of United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UN CBD) for celebrating the International Year of Biodiversity, Kerala State Biodiversity Board, University of Kerala and Navdanya, New Delhi at Thiruvananthapuram during 27-31 December 2010. IBC 2010 was a colloquium of biodiversity experts, professionals, amateurs, bureaucrats, policy makers, NGOs and civil society members for discussing the status of biodiversity in India, scope for using the greater biodiversity of the country for alleviating poverty, to fight globalisation, and to formulate strategies for conservation and sustainable utilisation of biodiversity, besides sharing of benefits, as envisaged in CBD. We have a greater responsibility to share in the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity with a view of raising global awareness about biodiversity, its value to human well-being and the ways that individuals and societies can change their behaviour to become more sustainable. We hope that IBC would remain as a stepping stone for the celebrations in connection with the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity.