Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES); Ministry of the Environment of Japan; Ministry of the Environment and Energy of Costa Rica; United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD); United Nations University - Institute for Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS)

Accelerated action and partnership from local community to global levels is required to achieve the SDGs and other targets. In the face of this challenge, the Satoyama Initiative was developed as a global effort to contribute and achieve the vision of “societies in harmony with nature” through integrated approaches for biodiversity conservation and sustainable development in the socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes around the world. This side event will highlight how the initiative helps to accelerate protecting the planet and building resilience (SDGs 13, 14, and 15); advancing human well-being and sharing nature’s economic benefits (SDGs 1 and 10); and fostering partnership (SDG 17).

To implement the Satoyama Initiative, the International Partnership for the Satoyama Initiative (IPSI) was established and now consists of 267 organizations including governments, NGOs, academic institutions, private sector organizations, and others. As its flagship program, the Community Development and Knowledge Management for the Satoyama Initiative (COMDEKS) was launched in 2011 to promote sustainable use of natural resources in the landscapes and seascapes with local communities. COMDEKS is funded by the Japan Biodiversity Fund, and implemented by UNDP in partnership with MOEJ, SCBD and UNU-IAS, and has recently been extended for a third phase. Over 200 community-based projects have been supported in the selected landscapes and seascapes in 20 developing countries through the GEF Small Grants Programme, implemented by UNDP, along with the efforts to scale up and institutionalize these successful initiatives.

Speakers at the side event, including the governments of Japan and Costa Rica, will share key lessons learned, and explore ways to integrate the management of “socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes” into national and sub-national policies as a critical contribution to the SDGs and the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, which is due to be presented at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the CBD in Kunming, China, in 2021. The event will also provide a chance to discuss how biodiversity conservation and sustainable use through integrated landscape and seascape approaches could contribute to green recovery from COVID-19.

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