(Montreal) “The Call of Montreal” to put in place systemic changes to counter the decline of nature “unprecedented in the history of humanity” was launched Thursday evening, within the framework of the 15e United Nations Conference on Biodiversity (COP15).
“Changes aimed only at the direct factors of nature degradation will not be sufficient to reverse [son] decline,” says the text, which also points out that technological alternatives “have their limits” and will not be able to replace certain vital contributions of nature.
The Appeal responds to “repeated” but often ignored requests from scientists around the world to tackle the underlying causes of biodiversity decline, said Alain Branchaud, director general of the Quebec chapter of the Society for the Nature. and Canada’s parks.
“So that there will never be another COP where we are going to set aside this important discussion,” he said, inflating a balloon to illustrate that the Earth has physical limits that cannot be exceeded.
The launch of the Montreal Call comes at the end of a conference on the underlying causes responsible for the loss of biodiversity held by civil society on the sidelines of COP15.
“These are radical changes that are needed,” declared Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante, endorsing the Call and inviting “all cities, all countries” to do the same.
“We must not be afraid to implement new ideas and reconsider our way of doing things,” declared Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change, reiterating the importance of placing people indigenous peoples at the heart of conservation efforts.
“The Montreal Appeal is a start, we will not stop with this appeal,” promised Benoit Charette, Minister of the Environment, the Fight Against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks of the Quebec, claiming that “there is no room for partisanship” on environmental issues.
Further details will follow.