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About local authorities

Local authorities are administrative units of an area smaller than a state or province. Those local governments are considered guardians of natural resources because they set local environment and development policy, are responsible for land-use planning, and develop and manage infrastructure that depend on and/or impact biodiversity, such as water and waste management systems.

Background

Biodiversity is first and foremost a local issue. It is through our daily activities that we impact biodiversity and it is through local actions that the situation can be addressed most efficiently. Humankind depends on healthy ecosystems to survive, and producers and consumers at the local level can take direct action to protect these invaluable resources.

As of 2007, the Earth’s population is mostly urban. At the same time, one of the world’s most critical resources, biodiversity, is threatened as never before, with serious consequences for climate change, availability of water, food, and many other ecosystem services. A significant part of the activities leading to the achievement of Goal 7 of the Millennium Development Goals (environmental sustainability) will be played out in cities and urban environment, involving local governments, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and civil society as a whole.

At the initiative of the Mayor of Curitiba, Mr. Carlos Alberto Richa, a meeting on "Cities and Biodiversity: Achieving the 2010 Biodiversity Target" was held on 26-28 March 2007 in Curitiba, Brazil. Representatives of host cities of CBD COP meetings, representatives of host cities of UN chapters, and representatives of cities that have specific strategies with regard to biodiversity were invited to attend. Seventy participants, including 34 mayors and top city officials, attended this important event, and several case studies were presented. The Curitiba Declaration on Cities and Biodiversity (English, French and Spanish), which was adopted on the last day of the event, reaffirmed the urgency to engage local authorities in the implementation of the objectives of the Convention and its 2010 biodiversity target. In addition, the document announces the formation of a Steering Committee, comprising the City of Curitiba (Brazil), the City of Montreal (Canada), the City of Bonn (Germany), the City of Nagoya

COP 9

Decision IX/28

At COP 9 in Bonn, Germany in May 2008, the Parties discussed the role of local authorities in the implementation of the Convention and for the first time ever adopted a decision on cities and biodiversity, Decision IX/28. This decision encourages the 191 Parties to the Convention to recognize the role of cities in national strategies and plans, and invites Parties to support and assist cities in implementing the Convention at local level. Indeed, one of the greatest achievements of the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties is the recognition that the implementation of the three objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity requires the full engagement of cities and local authorities.

In addressing the participants in this historic event, Dr Ahmed Djoghlaf, the Executive Secretary of the Convention, stated that: “While cities are today part of the problem of the current unprecedented loss of biodiversity, they are also part of the solution. Indeed, the fight for life on Earth will be won or lost in cities. The hearts of citizen must be won. Local authorities have a major role to play, as global change starts at the local level.” A plan of action on cities and biodiversity will be submitted to the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties, to be held in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, in October 2010, the International Year of Biodiversity. A Nagoya Summit on Cities and Biodiversity will be convened during the meeting.

More on the engagement of cities can be read here.

Side Events

The Secretariat for the Convention on Biological Diversity participated in three side events on cities and local authorities at COP 9.