Local Action for Biodiversity: New Cities join in Durban
16 September 2008 (Durban, South Africa). All 21 pioneer cities in the project Local Action on Biodiversity have signed the Durban Commitment, a declaration recognizing the urgency of biodiversity loss and committing to action. This step was completed by the signature of the Countdown 2010 declaration by:
City of Joondalup, who expressed its commitment to build on the Durban Commitment for biodiversity thus paving the way for other cities to follow in their lead.
City of Curitiba, signed by Edoardo Guimaraes, Secretary of International Relations, on behalf of Mayor Richa. Specific commitment: extend the implementation of the BIO City programme to other metropolitan areas and to speed up and intensify its implementatation in Curitiba.
City of Seoul, signed by the Director General of the Green Seoul Bureau and handed over by Ami Koo, Team Leader of the Nature and Ecology Division, Green Seoul Bureau, City of Cape Town, signed by Grant Haskin, Deputy Mayor, Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality, City of Walvis Bay, signed by the Mayor, Ms Ulika Nambahu, City of Waitakere, signed by Ms Penny Hulse, Deputy Mayor
All cities have expressed their commitment to the Countdown 2010 principles and reinforced their intention to implement the Durban commitment as a contribution to the 2010 biodiversity target. They will now define five biodiversity projects to be implemented by 2010.
The Cities of Johannesburg, Edmonton, Barcelona, Durban and Bonn are in the final stages of signing the Countdown 2010 declaration. Nagoya has signed this Saturday, and other LAB cities are long standing partner of Countdown 2010, including the City of Tilburg which was the first local government to sign the Countdown 2010 declaration in 2005. With 18 LAB Cities out 21 strongly supporting both the Durban Commitment and the 2010 biodiversity target, the partnership between ICLEI and IUCN is becoming stronger each day.
Local Action for Biodiversity (LAB) is a global urban biodiversity pilot project running from 2006 to 2009 and working with a select group of local and regional authorities from around the world. Its overarching aim is to improve biodiversity management at the level of local government. IUCN’s Countdown 2010 has been part of the steering committee of the project since the beginning and was involved in the launch of the project. IUCN and ICLEI will now start an even closer cooperation for the second phase of the project.
