Secretary-General of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, Ivonne Higuero,

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

In joining the celebrations for this year’s World Wildlife Day, we should reflect on how nature -- wild ecosystems, animals, and plants -- play an intrinsic role in shaping and maintaining human security:

they ensure a livable climate;

they sustain our food, water, and economic systems;

and they protect our global health from zoonotic diseases.

Yet, in my lifetime, average populations of mammals, birds, fish, amphibians, and reptiles have plummeted by nearly 70%.

Wild fauna and flora continue to disappear before our eyes.

In many ways, our pursuit of development has neglected our embeddedness in nature.

Our development patterns are driving human insecurity -- along with new health threats; increased food insecurity; and disasters, which are increasing in frequency and intensity.

We must ‘build forward better’ from this pandemic where people and planet live in balance.

Indeed, there is now well-founded hope for the future.

Consider, for instance, the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, which is mobilising local communities to restore at least 1 billion hectares of our planet’s degraded land.

As countries gather at the UN Environment Assembly, expectations are growing towards the shaping of the first-ever international treaty controlling global plastics pollution -- vital efforts when plastics have been found in the smallest plankton to the largest whales.

And countries like Costa Rica are showing how investments in our natural world can pay immense ‘dividends’.

It has embraced a nature-based economy and in doing so, it has reversed deforestation trends and boosted populations of endangered wildlife like jaguars.

This approach has also reduced poverty -- and increased access to healthcare and clean water, as well as new education and economic opportunities.

Other ‘seismic shifts’ are happening as the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework is being finalised.

There is a growing recognition that the days of taking as much as possible from the Earth for a ‘quick profit’ are now over.

Crucially, the private sector is starting to play a more active role in the protection and restoration of our natural world.

In 2021, the world’s largest-ever private funding commitment to biodiversity conservation was inked.

The ‘Protecting Our Planet Challenge’ aims to ensure that nearly one-third of the planet is protected and preserved by the end of this decade.

And consider the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures, which is helping to re-direct game-changing levels of finance towards ‘nature-positive’ investments and nature-based solutions. 

Indeed, new financial instruments like Nature Performance Bonds hold great promise -- rewarding certified performance on nature-related actions with debt relief.

Or look to innovative approaches like The Lion’s Share.

The initiative is galvanizing the advertising and marketing sectors to raise over 100 million dollars per year towards wildlife conservation.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In 2022, we must finally dispel the false dichotomy that there is a ‘zero-sum game’ of wildlife versus the economy; or protecting ecosystems versus the economy.

Indeed, the world is ‘waking up’ and recognising the true value of nature, which holds many of the solutions we need to address the climate crisis and achieve the Global Goals.

Yet, at this very moment, there is a pressing need to ensure that the ‘pulse’ of the socio-economic recovery beats in tandem with nature.

To this end, all countries -- and especially key entities like ministries of finance -- must reassess what economic progress actually means. 

That means taking the protection of species and ecosystems FULLY INTO ACCOUNT as they define a bold new development pathway.

The United Nations Development Programme, members of the UN family like CITES and our partners will be on hand to drive forward this profound cultural shift.

This much is clear: new efforts to protect key species and restore ecosystems will help us to break through to that sustainable, livable future for all.

Happy World Wildlife Day.