International Biodiversity day is celebrated on 22nd
May every year. The international day for biological diversity falls within the
scope of UN Post-2015 Development agenda’s Sustainable
Development Goals. By the international cooperation, the stakeholders from
different concerned fields like sustainable agriculture, water and sanitation,
improved health and development, science and technology, urban resilience,
climate change, disaster risk reduction, deforestation and food security
assembled to have a discussion and propose a better plan for the present and
for the future as well. Recognition of the critical role of biodiversity in
sustainable development was found in the Rio+20 outcome document. “The world we
Want: A future for All.”
Biodiversity
is undoubtedly a global asset which bears tremendous values for the present and
future generations. Biodiversity is an exclusive term which includes the
broad-spectrum perspectives of securing and preserving the living contents of
the world which contributes to the maintenance of equilibrium in the
ecosystems. As UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres briefs the importance of
this day saying, “Biological diversity is vital for human health and
well-being. I urge all governments, businesses and civil society to take urgent
actions to protect and sustainably manage the fragile and vital web of life on
our one and only planet.”
The
theme selected by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) for International
Biodiversity day 22 May 2019 is “Our Biodiversity, Our Food, and Our Health.”
We as a generation of the 21st century have easy approachable access
to the varieties of food that probably our forefathers or our parents never
witnessed. But with the diverse offerings and availabilities, global diet is wholly
increasing in proportion, factually what people eat is becoming more
homogenized, and this is an alarming situation. This year, the International
Biodiversity day focuses on the biodiversity which lays the foundations of our
food and health for its reservations, preservations depicting it to be the key
catalyst in transforming the food system and improved human health. The main
objective of this theme is to disseminate more awareness to the reliance of our
food, our nutrition and improved health on biodiversity, and a healthy
ecosystem. The theme for 2019 offers the contribution in Sustainable
development goals by giving the strategic plans for climate change mitigation
and adaptations, availability of clean water, zero hunger and preservation and
restoration of natural ecosystems while the theme celebrates the diversity of
natural ecosystems for the existence and survival of the human and their
well-being on earth. Since the last few decades, the world is facing a
continuous decline in the diversity of field crops and various domestic animal
breeds. All the 17 fishing grounds of the
world are at the verge of their nonrenewable limits due to overfishing and are
hitting the unsustainable limits of fishing without any stringent measures. Due
to this rapid decline in the agrobiodiversity, food, and poultry, our world is
on the serious threats of famine. Poor
diet, health risks, fatal diseases, infectious diseases, contagious diseases
like obesity, malnutrition, diabetes, rickets, pneumonia, typhoid, AIDS and hepatitis
are reciprocated due to the loss of diverse food and diet. Fall in
agrobiodiversity also has resulted in a lack of essential knowledge about the
traditional medication and so is the world facing decrement in the availability
of traditional medicines.
Goals
to halt the loss in biodiversity and promotion of the sustainable utilization
of terrestrial and inland ecosystems are set in the strategic plan. These
objectives are the main components of the Sustainable Development Goal.15 Millions of the species are on the risk of
extinction due to the anthropogenic activities which is the biggest dilemma of
the present we need to worry about. The consolidated Strategic Plans for biodiversity
2011-2020 deeply intend to tie a knot between biodiversity, ecosystems and the
provision of victuals for better human health. The focus on this nexus of
biodiversity, food systems, and human health lays foundations for creating a well-defined
infrastructure. This link gives an opportunity to generate discussions to draw
out ways and means to achieve Aichi Targets till 2020 for global biodiversity
framework and aids to bend diversity loss curve by 2030.
Why do we celebrate Biodiversity day?
To
spread awareness, to educate people on the basic issues of concern i.e. the
worth of biodiversity and its safety, to assemble the will of Governments and
its resources to address the global problems that certainty of biodiversity
faces. Marking and celebrating these days reinforces the achievements of
humanity. Being a catalyst for change we must follow some collective actions, share
them to aware more people and save the globe. These actions include
·
Reduction in meat consumption.
·
Consumption of seasonal foods.
·
Try buying local foods.
·
Check the food waste to zero.
·
Compost food scrap.
·
Reduction of food packaging by using
reusable bags or using glass jars and containers.
·
Single-use plastics like a plastic straw,
coffee cups, plastic cutlery, take out containers, and plastic water bottles
must be avoided.
·
For food and nutrition promote indigenous
and local biodiversity.
Sidra
Aleem
The
author is a blogger, reader, M.Phil. scholar and member Positive
Pakistan.
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