October Days for Sustainable Development 2020: 6th Edition

'Biodiversity Loss and Pandemic Emergency. Reverse the trend and build a sustainable future'

Short video of the Conference

Video of the Conference

Agenda

Speakers

The 6th edition of the October Days for Sustainable Development was dedicated to the topic “Biodiversity loss and pandemic emergency: reverse the trend and build a sustainable future”. Due to the ongoing pandemic crisis, the Conference took place the 22 of October as an online event.

2020 was meant to be the year of crucial medium-term assessments of key indicators for the Agenda 2030 on the biodiversity loss. While the political consultation is suspended, the Covid outbreak confirms with dramatic evidence the accelerating pace of habitat degrades.

The 6^th edition of the October Days took the opportunity to draw the first lessons from the present emergency. Key actors of the global and local community were invited to discuss the issues at stake, basing on scientific evidence and the latest findings from the Covid emergency. An urgent inversion of strategy is the main lesson from the current crisis. The biodiversity considerations need to be put at the centre of the economic and political discourse, as well as a global effective political commitment – coordinated with the scientific community –   to protect people and planet on a lasting and structural level.

The event is organized by Mars, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Luxembourg with the European Investment Bank Institute and Caritas Luxembourg, in collaboration with WWF. Financial support from the FNR is gratefully acknowledged.

Contact: inequality@uni.lu

Moderator: Tanya Beckett, Broadcaster

Francisco de Paula Coelho, Dean, EIB Institute

Carole Dieschbourg, Minister for the Environment, Climate and Sustainable Development, Government of Luxembourg

Silvia Rova – Researcher, Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics, Ca' Foscari University of Venice

Josef Settele – Co-Chair of IPBES Global Assessment; UFZ Helmholtz - Centre for Environmental Research

Mauro Randone – Regional Manager, WWF Mediterranean Marine Initiative

Sharon Brooks – Deputy Head of Business and Biodiversity, UN Environment Programme – World Conservation Monitoring Centre

Conchita D’Ambrosio, Professor of Economics, FNR PEARL Chair, University of Luxembourg

The Conference offered a special focus on Venice, emblematic example of a fragile ecosystem, showing a resurgence during the lockdown,

With the support of

In collaboration with

Partner event of the European Green Week