“Faced with the stakes of the decline in biodiversity that scientists are alerting us to, only a collective mobilisation on the national and international levels will allow us to reverse this trend. 2020 will be a year of truth, and France is proud to host the IUCN World Conservation Congress in June 2020. We must make this event into the springboard towards the CoP15 to the Convention on Biological Diversity by outlining a new, ambitious international framework to fight against the disappearance of the natural world,” says Élisabeth Borne, French Minister for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition. France is the host country of the IUCN Congress 2020.
“We are entering a make-or-break decade for nature and humanity’s future,” says Dr Grethel Aguilar, IUCN Acting Director General. “We need healthy nature to create a just world without poverty where all people have access to food, water and healthcare. The IUCN World Conservation Congress presents the global community with a unique opportunity to drive decisive action to tackle the escalating biodiversity crisis.”
At the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2020, policy and business leaders will come together with top scientists and civil society, indigenous and youth organisations to drive worldwide conservation action and inform new global targets to curb the accelerating loss of biodiversity under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in October 2020 in Kunming, China.
The IUCN Congress 2020 will take place 11–19 June in Marseille, France, under the theme ‘One nature, one future’. The theme reflects the need for healthy nature as a prerequisite for achieving the vision of a just and sustainable world.
Over the past 70 years, IUCN Congresses have been instrumental in shaping the most important global conservation treaties and initiatives. These include the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the CBD.
Media opportunities at the IUCN Congress
- Latest news – IUCN and its Members and partners will share the latest updates on conservation and sustainable development
- Government announcements – IUCN Congress is a high-profile opportunity for government leaders to announce major environmental commitments and new conservation initiatives
- Interview opportunities – interview diverse conservation voices including leaders and decision-makers from government, civil society, indigenous peoples, business and academia from around the globe
- Press trips – IUCN will offer members of the media the opportunity to join press trips with IUCN experts to illustrate conservation issues to be discussed at the IUCN Congress
Background on the IUCN Congress
- Largest regularly-held conservation event in the world
- Held every 4 years
- More than 10,000 participants, including Heads of State, CEOs and civil society leaders, attended the 2016 IUCN World Conservation Congress
- Builds consensus among IUCN’s more than 1300 Member organisations
- IUCN Members include civil society organisations and over 200 government agencies from 173 countries
- In 2 parts: a 4-day open debate called The Forum and the 5-day decision-making Members’ Assembly
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For more information or to set up interviews, please contact congressmedia@iucn.org
