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1164. Biodiversity, Water, Food, and Health Nexus

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1164. Biodiversity, Water, Food, and Health Nexus

 

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) is sometimes referred to as the "biodiversity version of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change)". On 16 December, IPBES released a summary for policymakers on the "Thematic Assessment of the Interrelationship between Biodiversity, Water, Food and Health (Nexus Assessment)".

Environmental, social, and economic crises, such as biodiversity loss, water and food insecurity, health risks, and climate change, are closely linked (nexus) and interact with each other; therefore, cascading and individual approaches to crises can be counterproductive. The Nexus Assessment revealed synergies and trade-offs across the five "nexus elements" of biodiversity, water, food, health, and climate change to policymakers around the world, and examined specific response options to maximize co-benefits.

According to the report, more than half of the world's GDP (more than $50 trillion of the world's annual economic activity) is moderately to highly dependent on nature, yet it fails to prioritize short-term economic returns while incurring the costs to the natural world for those involved. The impact of current economic approaches, including food production, on biodiversity, water, health, and climate change, and on ecosystems that are not accounted for in economic activities, is estimated to be at least $10 to $25 trillion per year.

There is growing evidence of biophysical risks that threaten economic development and financial stability. Nonetheless, the existence of such unaccounted costs, alongside direct public subsidies for economic activities that negatively impact biodiversity (about $1.7 trillion per year), increases the incentive for private investment in economic activities that damage nature (about $5.3 trillion per year).

If the status quo continues, climate change will accelerate, challenges to achieving global policy goals will mount, and there will be a very bleak future for biodiversity, water, and human health. Similarly, maximizing the results of only one part of the nexus can often have negative consequences for other nexus elements. For example, a "food-first" approach by increasing food production prioritizes food production that provides positive nutritional benefits through increased per capita consumption, but has the potential to have negative impacts on biodiversity, water, and climate change. Focusing solely on climate change can also have a negative impact on biodiversity and food production by involving competition for land.

Fragmented and isolated systems and contradictory policies threaten the achievement of the SDGs. We need to move to a more integrated, inclusive, equitable, and adaptive 'nexus governance approach'.
 

 

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