Mainstreaming Biodiversity Issues Into Forestry And Agriculture

Forests harbour a large proportion of the Earth’s terrestrial biodiversity, which continues to be lost at an alarming rate. Deforestation is the single most important driver of forest biodiversity loss with 10 million ha of forest converted every year to other land uses, primarily for agriculture. Up to 30 percent of tree species are now threatened with extinction. As a consequence of overexploitation, wildlife populations have also been depleted across vast areas of forest, threatening the survival of many species. Protected areas, which are considered the cornerstone of biodiversity conservation, cover 18 percent of the world’s forests while a much larger 30 percent are designated primarily for the production of timber and non-wood forest products. These and other forests managed for various productive benefits play a critical role in biodiversity conservation and also provide essential ecosystem services, such as securing water supplies, providing recreational space, underpinning human well-being, ameliorating local climate and mitigating climate change. Therefore, the sustainable management of all forests is crucial for biodiversity conservation, and nations have committed to biodiversity mainstreaming under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Mainstreaming biodiversity in forestry requires prioritizing forest policies, plans, programmes, projects and investments that have a positive impact on biodiversity at the ecosystem, species and genetic levels. In practical terms, this involves the integration of biodiversity concerns into everyday forest management practice, as well as in long-term forest management plans, at various scales. It is a search for optimal outcomes across social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. This study is a collaboration between FAO and the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), lead centre of the CGIAR research programme on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA). This report is a compilation of country case studies as supplementary material to the main publicaiton, which reviews progress and outlines the technical and policy tools available for countries and stakeholders, as well as the steps needed, to effectively mainstream biodiversity in forestry.

Forests harbour a large proportion of the Earth’s terrestrial biodiversity, which continues to be lost at an alarming rate. Deforestation is the single most important driver of forest biodiversity loss with 10 million ha of forest converted every year to other land uses, primarily for agriculture. Up to 30 percent of tree species are now threatened with extinction. As a consequence of overexploitation, wildlife populations have also been depleted across vast areas of forest, threatening the survival of many species. Protected areas, which are considered the cornerstone of biodiversity conservation, cover 18 percent of the world’s forests while a much larger 30 percent are designated primarily for the production of timber and non-wood forest products. These and other forests managed for various productive benefits play a critical role in biodiversity conservation and also provide essential ecosystem services, such as securing water supplies, providing recreational space, underpinning human well-being, ameliorating local climate and mitigating climate change. Therefore, the sustainable management of all forests is crucial for biodiversity conservation, and nations have committed to biodiversity mainstreaming under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Mainstreaming biodiversity in forestry requires prioritizing forest policies, plans, programmes, projects and investments that have a positive impact on biodiversity at the ecosystem, species and genetic levels. In practical terms, this involves the integration of biodiversity concerns into everyday forest management practice, as well as in long-term forest management plans, at various scales. It is a search for optimal outcomes across social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. This study is a collaboration between FAO and the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), lead centre of the CGIAR research programme on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA). Illustrated by eight country case-studies, the report reviews progress and outlines the technical and policy tools available for countries and stakeholders, as well as the steps needed, to effectively mainstream biodiversity in forestry.

Drawing on experiences and insights from 16 megadiverse countries, this report examines how biodiversity is being mainstreamed in four key areas.

Achieving food and nutrition security for all people intrinsically links to the maintenance of biodiversity. Therefore, increasing sustainable production of healthy, nutritious and safe food requires mainstreaming biodiversity use and conservation criteria within crops, livestock, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture production systems. This cannot be achieved without the active participation and commitment of all productive sectors and different actors within the food system, from producers of different sectors and sub-sectors to consumers. This report presents the recommendations, conclusions and action plan emerged from the High Level Regional Dialogue on the Integration of Biodiversity in Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DRANIBA) in Latin America and the Caribbean, organized by FAO and the Government of Mexico in October 2018, within the framework of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity. Delegates from different productive sectors representing eleven countries of the region, and representatives from international and cooperation agencies, civil society and academia, reviewed case studies and discussed issues related to biodiversity mainstreaming in the agricultural, livestock, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture sectors. DRANIBA brought attention to stakeholders’ efforts in promoting the international agreements related to biological diversity and will contribute to COP-14 and its follow-up phases.

This book examines the challenges and impacts of poor diets and nutrition from current food systems and the potential contribution of biodiversity and ecosystem services in addressing these problems. There is a strong need for a multi-level, cross-sectoral approach that connects food biodiversity conservation and sustainable use to address critical problems in our current food systems, including malnutrition. Building on research from the Biodiversity for Food and Nutrition Project (BFN), which aims to better link biodiversity, diets and nutrition, the book presents a multi-country, cross-sectoral analysis of initiatives that have promoted local food biodiversity in four countries: Brazil, Kenya, Turkey and Sri Lanka. This book offers a comprehensive summary of the BFN Project results in each of the four countries along with lessons learned and how this work could be upscaled or applied in other regions. It argues that the strategic promotion and use of food biodiversity is critical in uniting attempts to address conservation, nutrition and livelihood concerns. The book is structured around chapters and case studies encompassing the BFN Project with specific experiences related by partners who played key roles in the work being done in each country. By offering a comparative view capable of furthering dialogue between the respective countries, it is also meant to connect the individual cases for a “greater than the sum of its parts” effect. This means consideration of how localized activities can be adapted to more countries and regions. Therefore, the book addresses global issues with a foot planted firmly in the grounded case study locations. This book will be of great interest to policymakers, practitioners and NGOs working on food and nutrition, as well as students and scholars of agriculture, food systems and sustainable development.

The report concisely introduces FAO’s work on biodiversity mainstreaming, including the regional consultations on the subject that took place in 2018 and 2019. It particularly focuses on the Regional Dialogue on Biodiversity Mainstreaming across Agricultural Sectors in the Near East and North Africa, held in Amman, Jordan, in November 2019. It outlines the main topics addressed in its opening, plenary, and closing sessions; and highlights the most relevant regional needs, priorities, and recommendations identified by the meeting participants.

"This book attempts to explore different natural resource sectors and to identify possibilities for mainstreaming the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity into these sectors but without compromising livelihoods in the process. It advocates leveraging incremental change within the existing natural resource sectors through research, policy change, development and demonstration of alternative approaches. There are six chapters that discuss these issues in the forestry, agricultural, livestock and fisheries sectors and within rangelands. A discussion on insect diversity and livelihoods also constitutes a separate chapter. The whole book is framed by an introduction and macro-economic perspective on how to start to resolve the conflicts between conservation and development."--Editor.

Forestry plays a minor but important role in the livelihoods of vulnerable population in Mongolia. The country has developed a Participatory Sustainable Forest Management (PSFM), integrating livestock raising with forestry. The project was designed to strengthen the PSFM process, thereby improving livelihoods and the ecological status of forests. The project reviewed the current forestry guidelines at both national and local government levels and forestry planning guidelines for Soum and Aimag levels were approved by the provincial Government promoting the participatory forest management (PFM). There were also advances to improve the policy and legal framework at national level, but lengthy policymaking process and need for increased inter-ministerial policy dialogues, among other issues, have challenged the full achievement of this outcome.