IPBES: Positive outcomes for people and nature are feasible, but we must act now
Changes to halt further biodiversity loss are more urgent than ever and feasible, says IPBES, the United Nations biodiversity panel. In two reports released this week, the panel calls on governments worldwide to develop coherent policies that address biodiversity, climate change, water, food and health. For the Netherlands, where challenges such as the nitrogen crisis and flood risks put pressure on people and nature, the IPBES reports offer a roadmap to a sustainable future.
The biodiversity is not doing well. Yet there is also reason for hope. The latest reports from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) show that we can achieve positive results for people and nature within a decade - if governments, businesses and citizens work better together. Hundreds of scientists from more than 50 countries contributed to the reports over the past three years, including Marja Spierenburg, professor of Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology at this faculty.
Stop symptom management and compartmentalized policies
Integral policy and action, with an eye to equity and equality are crucial to breaking systems that put pressure on biodiversity, IPBES argues in the Nexus Assessment report and the Transformative Change Assessment report. Cooperation across sectors, addressing root causes such as the way we have organized our economy, and how we think about our relationship to nature are central to both reports.
Esther Turnhout, professor at the University of Twente and one of the lead authors of the Transformative Change report, said, “These two reports stem from the recognition that current policies for nature and biodiversity are inadequate because they are focusing to much on fighting symptoms and are therefore ineffective and inequitable. The Transformative Change report therefore analyzes the root causes of nature loss, and its economic, political and cultural dimensions, and comes up with solutions to them.
Marcel Kok, working at the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency and one of the lead authors of the Nexus Assessment report, adds: “Nexus is not a neutral, scientific concept. The Nexus Assessment report shows how, with sustainable use of nature and biodiversity, benefits for health, food, water, energy and climate can be realized. Current policies are not designed to deal with interconnected problems, while working in silos leads to high costs and ineffective policies.”
“Moreover, calculations in the report show that governments are still spending more money on subsidies that promote planetary destruction than on protecting nature. It is time that governments realize that in the long run these subsidies cost much more than they produce” explains Marja Spierenburg, professor of anthropology at Leiden University and also one of the lead authors of the Nexus Assessment report.
Practical tools
The new IPBES reports offer not only an overview of available knowledge, but also practical tools to apply that knowledge to sustainable change. That implementation does need to happen quickly, says Patrick Huntjens, one of the lead authors of the Transformative Change report and a lecturer at InHolland University of Applied Sciences and professor at Maastricht Sustainability Institute. “There is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to avoid irreversible tipping points and preserve essential ecosystem functions. Transformative change requires fundamental, system-wide shifts in ways of thinking, structures and practices, with justice and sustainability at its core. The IPBES report therefore calls for a new eco-social contract that balances human prosperity and nature restoration.”
The Transformative Change report contains more than 400 case studies showing successful initiatives worldwide, and provides clear examples of how collaborative and context-specific actions can produce positive results for both nature and people in less than a decade. The report also cites Dutch practical examples of transformative change, such as the Marker Wadden. This is a unique nature restoration project in the Markermeer, where artificial islands have been constructed to restore biodiversity and improve water quality. The project combines ecological knowledge with innovative techniques and has led to the return of several bird species. It also led to greater awareness of the importance of nature restoration in the Netherlands among a wider audience.
The Nexus Assessment report presents the analysis of 186 different future scenarios, and based on that, has formulated numerous concrete actions and policy proposals. “The report presents integrated solutions that can prevent, for example, climate-proofing agriculture at the expense of biodiversity. Much attention is paid to a fair distribution of costs and benefits of the proposed solutions. For example, it is not just about eliminating subsidies that promote harmful forms of agricultural production. We must also ensure that farmers can actually make the transition to more sustainable agriculture, and not trap them in a financing model that makes that transition impossible. Making agriculture more sustainable also requires strengthening the land rights of vulnerable groups in society, such as indigenous communities, so that they too can continue to invest in and benefit from sustainable management and use of their land,” says Marja Spierenburg.
Its importance for the Netherlands
These reports are important for the Netherlands, where issues such as the nitrogen crisis, water shortages and surpluses, and intensive agriculture put great pressure on human and natural health. Moreover, Ether Turnhout points out: “The Dutch government and companies have a very big impact on nature, both here and worldwide. That affects people directly, for example in their health. It is really of great importance that we rediscover our relationship with nature and build institutions and rules that promote a nature-inclusive society.”
So for the Netherlands, too, the IPBES reports provide a concrete basis for developing coherent policies that balance nature, prosperity and well-being. By embracing the IPBES recommendations and making fundamental changes in all sectors of society, we are taking steps toward a future-proof Netherlands.
Authors
Transformative Change assessment
- Esther Turnhout, Universiteit Twente, e.turnhout@utwente.nl
- Niki Frantzeskaki, Universiteit Untrecht, n.frantzeskaki@uu.nl
- Patrick Huntjens, Hogeschool In Holland, Patrick.Huntjens@inholland.nl
Nexus assessment
- Marja Spierenburg, Universiteit Leiden, m.j.spierenburg@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
- Thijs Kuijken, Erasmus Universiteit, t.kuiken@erasmusmc.nl
- Marcel Kok, Planbureau voor de Leefomgeving, Marcel.Kok@pbl.nl