Description of Impact(s) (English Only) Citing the IPBES Global Assessment key finding that 1 million species of plants and animals face extinction and the top five direct drivers of biodiversity loss, WNFL in Wisconsin, a US-based Sports Radio Channel, has encouraged listeners to donate for endangered species.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) More than 100 NGOs have called on European Governments to implement ambitious climate and biodiversity policies to protect marine and coastal ecosystems.

"The NGOs, led by Seas At Risk, BirdLife Europe, ClientEarth, Oceana, Surfrider Foundation Europe and WWF, highlight that to be successful, change is needed on both land and sea, so they call for:

• At least 30% of the ocean to be highly or fully protected by 2030
• Shift to low-impact fishing
• Securing a pollution-free ocean
• Planning of human activities that support the restoration of thriving marine ecosystems"

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The Kunst Haus Wien, a museum of Wien Holding in Vienna, showed a space-specific installation by the German artist Claudius Schulze from January 30 to April 13, 2020. The artist “contrasts the extinction of animals and plants with new technological developments such as intelligent machines as an artificial ‘species’” and “raises questions about the future of our biosphere using large-format photographs, 3D scans and animations.” The Kunst Haus Wien cites the IPBES Global Assessment and its findings in a press release, illustrating the timeliness and relevance of Schulze’s work.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The organizations AXA IM, BNP Paribas AM, Mirova and Sycamore AM have launched a joint initiative to develop a “pioneering tool for measuring investment impact on biodiversity,” stating that they “strongly believe that preserving the planet’s biodiversity is an urgent priority.” Mirova cites the IPBES Global Assessment and its finding that one million species are at risk of extinction in its official announcement.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The 16th International Poster Biennial contest has chosen biodiversity as the focus of its environmental category, partly in response to the urgency highlighted by the IPBES Global Assessment. "The scale of the current biodiversity breakdown is unparalleled; the IPBES report warns that more than a third of all marine mammals, more than 40 percent of amphibian species and 10 percent of insects are threatened."

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The International Poster Biennial has chosen ‘biodiversity’ as the theme for the environmental category of its 16th edition. In an article announcing the choice on the UN Environment Programme’s website, the IPBES Global Assessment is referenced multiple times, as it conveyed the magnitude of biodiversity loss.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The British Natural History Museum has declared a planetary emergency “in recognition of humanity's failure to combat our destructive impact on the planet's survival systems.” In its official announced the Museum cited to IPBES Global Assessment Coordinating Lead Author Andy Purvis, who referred to the Global Assessment finding that one million species are at risk of extinction as a “warning light.”

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The Irish Social Democrat Party has published a report on biodiversity, titled “Biodiversity: Protecting our Fauna and Natural Habitat,” which outlines the importance of protecting biodiversity and the party’s strategies for doing so. The report highlights the finding of the IPBES Global Assessment that the current decline of nature is unprecedented.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The IPBES Global Assessment is cited multiple times in the World Economic Forum Global Risk Report 2020. The report draws on the findings of the Assessment to underscore the negative implications of biodiversity loss.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) Multiple IPBES Assessments, including the IPBES Global Assessment, are referenced in the World Economic Forum Global Risk Report 2020. Drawing on the Global Assessment,the Report highlights that “the dramatic loss of biodiversity brings serious risks for societies, economies and the health of the planet.”

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The California-based Center for Biological Diversity has just issued a 30 page plan titled, "Saving Life on Earth: A Plan to Halt the Global Extinction Crisis." The plan centers the key finding of the Global Assessment that 1 million plant and animal species face extinction as the impetus for urgent action. "This looming mass extinction should shock the conscience." The plan calls for specific actions to be taken at both the national and international level to address the extinction crisis and $100 Billion in allocated funds.

“This isn’t just an environmental crisis. It’s a cultural and spiritual crisis,” said Tierra Curry, a scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity. “By turning our backs on the wild, we’re turning our backs on what it means to be human. Animals and plants are integral to who we are and what kind of world we want to live in. When we lose a species, the world becomes a colder, lonelier place.”

“The biblical story of Noah points to a truth for our time. God desires the preservation of all species,” said Allen Johnson, coordinator of Christians for the Mountains. “Humans are given the privilege to have intimate knowledge of plants and animals, and the responsibility to nurture and protect them.”

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) An article published by Agrilinks, an online hub for agriculture, food security and development professionals, summarizes findings from the IPBES Global Assessment related to food security.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) Citing the recent reports of a million species at risk of extinction (based on the IPBES Global Assessment Report), one of Oman's leading fashion retailers, Splash, has unveiled a fashion calendar which highlights the destruction of nature and what steps the company is taking the reduce their impact on the environment.

A promotional video can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=984551648591385

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) Building on the work of IPBES and IPBES-related research interests, an article in the journal “Ecosystems and People” titled “Disentangling ‘ecosystem services’ and ‘nature’s contributions to people’” explores these terms in greater detail and contributes to broader knowledge and data schemes.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) During the plenary of the Strategic Orientation Council of the Fondation pour la recherche sur la biodiversité (Foundation for Biodiversity Research), President Jean-Francois Silvain presented impactful scientific articles from 2019 that accentuated and expanded the message shared by IPBES that the populations of many species are declining and that one million species are at risk of extinction.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) Citing the IPBES Global Assessment, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has published its “Strategy on Mainstreaming Biodiversity across Agricultural Sectors.” The draft was considered and adopted by the Council during its 163rd session in December 2019.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) Bosnia and Herzegovina, under the coordination of UNEP-WCMC, and with the support of IKI, is carrying out a National Ecosystem Assessment that startes from the IPBES conceptual framework, with the use of key findings from a number of IPBES Assessment Reports - especially from the Europe and Central Asia Regional Assessment Report. Bosnia and Herzegovina strives to assess its own knowledge that is relevant for better informed decisions about biodiversity and nature's contributions to people.

The lack of relevant data and indicators encouraged the team, gathered from scientists from all over Bosnia and Herzegovina, to think innovatively about the simple use of significant, but scattered knowledge. As a result, for the first time, they are talking about mapping NCP/ecosystem services, direct and indirect drivers and scenarios for biodiversity in the country.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The Austrian Biodiversity Council (Österreichischer Biodiversitätsrat), under the umbrella of the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Forum (Forum Biodiversität und Ökosystemleistungen), has published a list of 5 core demands for the Austrian Federal Government and Parliament (and all levels of local government) to heed the warnings of science and rapidly implement concrete and effective policies.

1): Stop the biodiversity crisis; 2) Comply with obligations; 3) Transform into a society which is compatible with nature; 4) Strengthen science and education; 5) Promote biodiversity-positive land use and green infrastructure

The council continued with concrete recommendations for each core demand.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The Austrian Biodiversity Council (Österreichischer Biodiversitätsrat), under the umbrella of the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Forum (Forum Biodiversität und Ökosystemleistungen), has published a list of 5 core demands for the Federal Government and Parliament (and all levels of local government) to heed the warnings of science and rapidly implement concrete and effective policies.

1): Stop the biodiversity crisis; 2) Comply with obligations; 3) Transform into a society which is compatible with nature; 4) Strengthen science and education; 5) Promote biodiversity-positive land use and green infrastructure

The council continued with concrete recommendations for each core demand.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) On the heels of a European Citizen Initiative petition, the European Parliament, citing the IPBES Pollination, Pollinators and Food Production Assessment Report, passed a resolution urging the European Commission to implement a wide range of pollinator-friendly policies.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The Environmental Protection Agency of Ghana held a round-table Discussion on the work of IPBES on 11 December 2019, imploring civil society to redouble their efforts to protect biodiversity and participate in IPBES activities.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) On 11 December, 2019 the European Commission released the 'European Green Deal,' integrating the key drivers of biodiversity loss from the IPBES Global Assessment Report. It is expected that further the fully developed EU Biodiversity Strategy will be published March 2020.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The AXA Research Fund, citing the IPBES Global Assessment, published a report titled, "Biodiversity at Risk: Preserving the natural world for our future" which focuses on biodiversity and climate change, biodiversity and security, biodiversity and the economy, and changing the way that business is conducted.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) Elizabeth Mrema, the Convention on Biological Diversity's Acting Executive Secretary, urged participants at the Thematic Workshop on Area-Based Conservation Measures to develop bold targets for area-based conservation measures, sustainable use of biodiversity and mainstreaming of biodiversity after noting that "the recent IPBES report sounded the clarion call."

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) Members of European Parliament urged the European Commission and Member States to commit to “immediate, substantial and additional” efforts in the form of legally binding targets on biodiversity conservation and restoration, to meet EU targets and stop the current trajectory of biodiversity loss.

Further information can also be found at: https://multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/en/cop15-to-the-convention-on-biological-diversity_I181246-V_v

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The World Wide Fund For Nature has published a report entitled 'Climate, Nature and Our 1.5°C Future', which includes substantial portions of IPBES Global Assessment evidence to attempt to bring together the most recent science regarding shared scenarios and policies to address biodiversity loss, climate change and sustainable development.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) A United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity media release, amidst the intersessional meeting of the subsidiary body on science, highlighted IPBES evidence, particularly the Global Assessment Report, as the science base for the post-2020 biodiversity framework to be agreed in Kunming October 2020.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) The Council of the European Union, citing the IPBES Global Assessment key finding that 1 million species of plants and animals risk extinction as a key impetus, has committed to provide political leadership in the Convention on Biological Diversity process to agree a post-2020 biodiversity framework.

"The Council is committed to leading by example and making a robust contribution to the adoption of an ambitious and realistic post-2020 global biodiversity framework to halt the loss of and restore biodiversity by 2030."

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) GEF Montaña Project cites findings of the IPBES Global Assessment as key motivation in the decision to create the Biodiversity and Protected Areas Service (SBAP), which will serve as a solution to prevent local species from disappearing. According to Jan José Donoso, head of the Natural Resources and Biodiversity Division of the Ministry of the Environment and director of the GEF Montaña Project, officials believe “that the creation of the Biodiversity and Protected Areas Service (SBAP) will be a solution to the lack of concrete actions and lack of responses in the country, since we will have a public service dedicated exclusively to the conservation and protection of ecosystems and species”. The GEF Montaña Project is a project run by the Environment Ministry of Chile and the Sendero de Chile Foundation, with support from the United Nations Environment Programme.

Description of Impact(s) (English Only) In an article in “China Watch,” Li Ganjie, the Chinese Minister of Environment and Ecology cited the IPBES Global Assessment as evidence that “biodiversity conservation still faces great challenges.” The Minister then highlighted China’s continued commitment to protecting biodiversity, including its efforts to make the CBD COP 15 a success, as well as to integrate biodiversity conservation into policies related to agriculture, forestry, fishery and finance, and to improve international cooperation on biodiversity conservation.