As the UK’s leading statutory nature conservation and recovery advisor, today, on UN International Day for Biological Diversity we are challenging everyone to #BuildBackBiodiversity and to be good ancestors for nature, with the launch of our new Strategy – Together for Nature.
An invited audience of representatives of government departments, agencies, conservation bodies, partners and young activists joined us at our Peterborough office for our Strategy launch, where we shared our Vision of thriving nature for a sustainable future.
Together for Nature focuses on turning robust scientific evidence into action for nature recovery and shows how we, as an organisation, will drive change through our Vision, Mission, Strategic Priorities and Values. It also demonstrates our commitment to investing in our people – our key asset – and to championing our Values of inclusion, collaboration and innovation.
At the launch event, our Chair, Professor Colin Galbraith set out why our new Strategy is timely, saying: "Nature is in crisis, with species and habitats declining, and people disconnected from the natural world on which they depend. There is an urgent need to understand the changes we are seeing and to use our collective knowledge to help nature recover."
Young activists spoke about the importance of being good ancestors for future generations, challenging the audience to focus on the legacy of their actions: "For millennia our environment has supported life, and we have a responsibility to nurture it for the generations to come. This is a pivotal time for JNCC to support young people in facilitating a legacy of care, protection and compassion for all beings; both human and planetary," said Oliva Agbe and Leah Gowing.
Dr Gemma Harper, our CEO, added: "Nature is calling us. Significant changes in land and sea use, climate breakdown, exploitation of species, pollution and introduction of non-native and invasive species have drastically depleted nature. Globally, one million species are at risk of extinction. Governments, industry and civil society all have a part to play. There is cause for hope. We need to act in partnership, with courage and vision, to implement the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and to take a long-term view.
"With science and evidence at the heart of our Strategy we are ready to answer nature’s call and to continue on the right course to be a good ancestor – Together for Nature."
For more information see our Together for Nature webpages or download a copy of Together for Nature.