The IPBES task force and technical support unit on capacity-building are pleased to invite you to watch the recorded webinar in the pilot of the IPBES Webinar Series.

The webinar  "The IPBES Assessment Process" from 7 April 2016 is now online here. 

In this webinar, the IPBES task force and technical support unit partnered with Ivar Baste, IPBES Bureau member and co-chair of the IPBES task force on capacity-building.

The Himalayan state of Uttarakhand in the Central Himalayas of the Indian Himalayan Region, is largely dominated by biodiversity rich forest ecosystem thus making it one of the most unique yet fragile ecosystems. The majority of the traditional hill communities are dependent on natural resources for food, fruits, fuel wood, and fodder along with a variety of ecological services. Traditional belief was that the natural resources are essential for the livelihood and ecological security of mountain regions.

On the occasion of World’s Wetland Day 2016, CEE Himalaya together with the JSW Foundation and RCE Srinagar organized a series of activities for the inhabitants of Kuroli village, a small and picturesque village, located in Bhatwari Block in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand. Youths, adults, elderly, school children, teachers, and many others participated in the event.

RCE Greater Dhaka organized a field trip on biodiversity on 28th Nov, 2015. The trip organized by the Department of Environmental Science was led by Prof. Rahman and Dr Dastagir for 150 students currently enrolled in sustainability related courses at the International University of Business Agriculture and Technology (IUBAT). This initiative was part of the planned semester activity of the students. The National Botanical Garden of Bangladesh with an area of approximately 84 hectares is located at Mirpur in Dhaka. Established in 1961, it is the largest botanical garden in Bangladesh.

The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), established in 2012, is an independent intergovernmental body open to all member countries of the United Nations. The members are committed to building IPBES as the leading intergovernmental body for assessing the state of the planet's biodiversity, its ecosystems and the essential services they provide to society.

The RCE Kano stakeholder, the Center for Renewable Energy and Action on Climate Change together with RCE Kano is launching a campaign to plant one million economic trees to condense the Sahara desert encroachment .

Launch of 1 Million Economic Trees for the Sahel Initiative: Towards reversing desert encroachment and restoring degraded lands along 11 frontline states in Northern Nigeria

28 November, 2015, Zamfara State, Nigeria

The invitation letter can be downloaded below.

The Community-to-Community Exchange and Capacity Development Workshop for Traditional Knowledge Holders was held on 28th September to 4th October 2015, in Bengaluru, India and 100 delegates from Africa, South East Asia and the Central Asia gathered to highlight the importance of fostering the linkages between biodiversity and health and the relevance of Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS). UNU-IAS and UNDP among others were co-organizers of this important event.

Nine major highlights emerged from this event:

In ancient times, trees were worshipped in the form of sacred groves, and animals were taken care of as form of Gods. However, with the current religious practices adopted, the trend seems to have been reversed causing unsustainable harvest of plants and endangering of animals. RCE Srinagar with CEE Himalaya launched an education programme to study the religious practices adopted and their impact on biodiversity and environment.