Convention on Biological Diversity

About: Convention on Biological Diversity is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 2232 publications have been published within this topic receiving 65599 citations. The topic is also known as: CBD & United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.

Conflicts in Environmental Regulation and the Internationalisation of the State: Contested Terrains

Abstract: Introduction: Genetic Resources and the Internationalisation of the State 1. The Regulation of Nature in Post-Fordism 2. On the Value of Nature: The Convention on Biological Diversity and the Commercialisation of Genetic Resources 3. Limits to Commercialisation?: Genetic Resources in Agriculture and the Conflict over a Multilateral Exchange System 4. Politicising Intellectual Property Rights: The Conflicts around the TRIPS Agreement and the World Intellectual Property Organisation 5. The Relevance of the National and the Local: The Disputes over a Valorization Paradigm in Mexico and Chiapas 6. Contested Terrains: Towards a Neo-Poulantzian Approach to International Political Economy

Establishing Forest Inventory Reference Definitions for Forest and Growing Stock: a Study towards Common Reporting

Abstract: International agreements such as the Kyoto protocol and Convention on Biological Diversity (1992), as well as, criteria and indicator processes require reports on the status of nations’ forests. Any comparison of the current status and trends of forest resources among nations presumes that the nations’ applied definitions and concepts produce comparable estimates of the status of forests. In spite of this, the FAO has already collected global information for 60 years and made noticeable efforts in creating common definitions, but forest related data are still collected using diverse definitions, even regarding basic concepts such as forest and forest area. A simple consequence is that the cross-countries estimates are not comparable. The reasons behind the differences in the definitions are diverse histories, and sometimes different use of forests. In an ideal case, national forest inventories should fulfil both national and international needs. In addition to the FAO’s Forest Resources Assessment process, other efforts are made to assess the status of forests in European countries, e.g. European Forest Information and Communication System (EFICS). EFICS produced reports about forest inventories but does not suggest any common definition or method to convert estimates from one definition to another one. This article presents principles and methods to create commonly acceptable and adoptable definitions for forest inventories. The principles and methods are demonstrated using two examples: the reference definitions of forest and growing stock. The article is based on the work of COST Action E43 (http://www.metla.fi/eu/cost/e43/).

Managing marine genetic diversity: time for action?

Abstract: The 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity has established an international framework for broader conservation objectives for the management of ocean use activities (cf. Sainsbury and Sumaila, 2003). The Convention calls for preservation of biological diversity, including genetic, species and ecosystem diversity, thereby creating a demand for developing management forms that can cope with this issue. A number of initiatives have been developed to address this and other related international agreements. Notably, Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management (EBFM; cf. Brodziak and Link, 2002; Sainsbury and Sumaila, 2003) has emerged as a holistic approach to maintaining ecosystems and sustainable fisheries. EBFM should incorporate all levels of diversity, but in practice has focused on species and ecosystem diversity (e.g., Brodziak and Link, 2002). The application of EBFM must be broadened to include conservation of genetic diversity, including intraspecific diversity, which are not necessarily protected by maintaining diversity at higher levels (cf. Kenchington, 2003). Scientific justification for conserving genetic diversity stems from several sources including: (1) maintaining adaptability of natural populations; (2) the future utility of genetic resources for medical and other purposes; and (3) changes in life history traits and behaviour that influence the dynamics of fish populations, energy flows in the ecosystem, and ultimately, sustainable yield. The challenge is to formulate appropriate management actions for the preservation of genetic diversity (e.g., Sainsbury and Sumaila, 2003). This will require consensus on what it is we are trying to preserve (e.g., alleles, traits, population structure) and some means of assessing genetic status. This paper endeavours to outline a process to develop management advice for marine genetic diversity. We challenge fish conservation geneticists to consider their work in a more applied context so that management actions can be developed to preserve genetic resources.

Traditional resource rights: International instruments for protection and compensation for indigenous peoples and local communities

Abstract: Today, there is increasing recognition that traditional and indigenous knowledge systems can provide alternative strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of natural resources, a realisation that is strongly reflected in the Convention on biological diversity. However, there is a fear that this interest in traditional knowledge systems will lead to the basic human, cultural and scientific rights of indigenous people being sidelined, something the CBD fails to address adequately. This had given rise to the concept of Traditional Resources Rights (TRR). This publication, therefore, explores TRRs and indigenous peoples and local communities' rights to their knowledge systems and explores the ways and means in which these can be adquately protected by international legislation.