19 Oct – 2 Nov 2024
Cali, Colombia
Partner with Youth to Achieve The Global Biodiversity Framework
Dr. Theresa Mundita Lim
ACB Executive Director
Opening Remarks
To Julia Berger representing Hanns Seidel Stiftung,
Mika Tan, our former AYBP Coordinator and now representing the Global Youth Biodiversity Network,
conservation partners, our young biodiversity leaders and advocates,
ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning and welcome to the ASEAN Pavilion!
The ASEAN region, though small in size, cradles over a fourth of all known species on Earth. It is a sanctuary to three of the world’s 17 megadiverse countries, with five countries in the Indo-Burma region considered among the most biologically important regions on the planet. It contains a multitude of endemic species of both flora and fauna, and more are waiting to be discovered. This rich natural heritage provides valuable services to more than 660 million people and serves as an essential resource base for the region’s economic development, estimated to be valued at tens of trillions of dollars every year, far larger than the global gross domestic product.
This year’s UN Biodiversity Conference, tagged as People’s COP, emphasises the need to recognise the value of multi-stakeholder participation in sustainability. The ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity acknowledges the critical role that young people play in conservation at the local, regional, and global levels. In order to empower the young people of ASEAN by including them in the development and execution of biodiversity policies and initiatives at all levels, we launched the ASEAN Youth Biodiversity Programme, or AYBP, in 2018 in partnership with the European Union. The AYBP was successfully designed and implemented in collaboration with the Global Youth Biodiversity Network, the Convention on Biological Diversity’s official youth constituency.
Since then, this youth programme has made significant strides in empowering young biodiversity advocates in the ASEAN—so much so that it is now an institutionalised programme in the ACB, endorsed by the ASEAN Member States.
Under the AYBP are notable sub-programmes such as the Young ASEAN Storytellers, where 20 talented and skilled young leaders created powerful stories of conservation from 11 ASEAN Heritage Parks. There is also the Young Biodiversity Leaders cohort, which provides in-depth capacity building and mentorship for youth leaders in biodiversity and increases youth participation in biodiversity governance while strengthening youth-led conservation efforts.
Now, through this event, we are happy to formalise our partnership in advancing youth participation in policy and decision making for biodiversity—the Hanns Seidel Stiftung.
Hanns Seidel Foundation-Indonesia has been a partner of the ACB since 2022 in boosting youth participation in regional and global biodiversity dialogues. We thank Hanns Seidel for your trust and confidence with our ASEAN youth leaders—the changemakers that we need to sustain our web of life.
The MoU signing today between HSS and the ACB will further strengthen civil society’s participation in biodiversity processes and governance in ASEAN, including meaningful engagement with the youth sector.
I will not keep you any longer as I am aware that our young biodiversity champions here prepared a unique and exciting programme for all of us.
Thank you all so much for coming and let us all learn how these young and dynamic leaders will help hit both regional and global biodiversity targets.
Muchas gracias!
