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“Macquarie Statement” adopted by consensus at IUCN Academy Colloquium.
Delegates at the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law’s 3rd Annual Colloquium hosted by Macquarie University through its Centre for Environmental Law reached a consensus on the need to protect biological diversity as a fundamental part of efforts to ensure a healthy environment for present and future generations of humans and other living species.
The statement, to be known as the “Macquarie Statement” was debated in the final plenary session of the five day gathering in Sydney of more than 130 environmental experts from 27 nations to consider the theme of “Biodiversity Conservation, Law + Livelihoods: Bridging the North – South Divide. The complete text of the statement is set out below:
"MACQUARIE STATEMENT"
STATEMENT OF THE THIRD COLLOQUIUM OF THE
IUCN ACADEMY OF ENVIRONMENTAL LAW
At the Third Colloquium of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law, more than 130 environmental experts from 27 nations representing universities from each continent gathered to consider the theme of “Biodiversity Conservation, Law + Livelihoods: Bridging the North-South Divide”. Papers presented by the participants and discussions in both plenary and panel sessions reflected a broad recognition that efforts to protect biological diversity are a fundamental part of efforts to ensure a healthy environment for present and future generations of humans and other living species.
The colloquium took into account the findings of the Millennium Ecosystems Assessment that, despite past warnings, threats to biodiversity and general environmental degradation have continued unabated, making it difficult to meet the original target of reducing the loss of biodiversity by the year 2010 and to meet Millennium Development Goals by 2015. To improve our capacity to meet these goals, the colloquium emphasized the following themes.
Human activity, including anthropogenic causes of climate change, is contributing to an alarming rate of species extinction that is reducing the diversity of the biosphere to the detriment of present and future generations.
Environmental law must focus on redressing the factors that contribute to the reduction in biological diversity at their sources by creating appropriate incentives for changing behaviour. Further, environmental law must develop and put into effect the legal tools that will turn established and evolving scientific and policy recommendations into enforceable norms, institutions and procedures. At a global level, this must build on the established principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.
The establishment and maintenance of protected areas on a national, regional or global basis can play an important role in protecting endangered species and preserving biodiversity by conserving ecosystems and natural habitats on which species depend.
Recognizing the complex interdependencies of living organisms in ecosystems, efforts to preserve biodiversity must emphasize a broad ecosystem approach, rather than focusing primarily on preventing extinction on a species-by-species basis or park-by-park basis.
As globalization spreads concepts of private property, it is important that concepts of property law be reconceptualized to ensure the protection of public values and to prevent the destruction of the economy of nature and the environmental services that ecosystems provide.
Measures that promote the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity ultimately will contribute to a more peaceful and prosperous world for the benefit of both current and future generations. All countries should follow sustainable development paths, learning from, and avoiding, the mistakes of the past.
As knowledge of the causes and consequences of environmental problems continues to improve, it is imperative that legal concepts be adapted to take into account new information and to improve the capacity of law to respond to environmental imperatives. The considerable expertise possessed by members of the Academy of Environmental Law can be leveraged to make significant contributions to improved public policy through collaborative and comparative law research projects. These projects can help improve our understanding of what policies work and why and enhance our ability to employ law to achieve our shared goals.
Special and deliberate efforts should be made to develop a critical mass of expertise and institutional arrangements in developing countries, paying particular attention to the interests of minority, indigenous and marginalized peoples to ensure equitable national and regional sustainable development.
Every country and regional entity must put into place legal and policy mechanisms as well as institutional procedures that protect the rights of minorities, indigenous and marginalized people in relation to their settlements, knowledge, customary law and access to justice, ensuring that they have priority in benefits derived from sustainable use of biodiversity.
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