Destruction Of Natural World, Food Insecurity, Climate Change & Increasing Water Stress Being Addressed In Isolation

IPBES (the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, often referred to as the ‘IPCC for Nature’) has approved its Nexus Assessment.

The report finds that global policy goals are under threat because deeply intertwined global crises – including destruction of the natural world, food insecurity, climate change, global pandemics and increasing water stress – are being addressed in isolation, in policy, financial systems and governance. This is a huge and up to now largely unrecognised problem.

It highlights dozens of readily available approaches that could address these significant global problems simultaneously.

● Continuing with this fragmented approach puts the Sustainable Development Goals -including those focused on climate change and biodiversity – under threat. Focusing on just one sector in isolation often causes problems elsewhere. [KM-B3]

The problems of addressing global issues separately:

● Different crises are all affected by the same underlying socioeconomic trends – including the growth in GDP, waste and overconsumption – causing, for example, changes in use of land and seas, pollution, invasive alien species or nsustainable
extraction [KM-A2].

● This is made worse by fragmented governance of biodiversity, water, food, health and climate change. Different institutions and actors work in isolation on siloed policy agendas, resulting in conflicting objectives and inefficient resource use [KM-A2].

● These direct and indirect drivers interact with each other and cause cascading impacts across different issues [KM-A2]. For example: increasingly affluent societies driving increases in food demand, leading to more land use change for agriculture, expanding unsustainable intensified practices; in turn triggering biodiversity loss, reduced water availability and quality, and increases in greenhouse gas emissions, causing climate change and higher risks of pathogen emergence [SPM.3, KM-A2].

Focusing on nature makes for more successful climate policy Biodiversity plays a vital role in supporting all the other nexus elements. Focusing on nature rather than just emissions makes it more likely that we will meet global climate goals.

● Biodiversity is essential to our very existence. It is also fast declining everywhere, at a rate of 2-6% per decade. [KM-A1]

● It is difficult to prioritise all the nexus elements at once. Scenarios with the widest benefits tend to include: effective conservation measures, ecosystem restoration, sustainable healthy diets, mitigating and adapting to climate change. [KM-B2]

Nature-oriented approaches make it more likely that global climate goals are achieved than prioritising tackling emissions to the exclusion of all else. [Figure SPM.6].

● Climate change policies are more effective in future scenarios that minimize trade-offs – such as avoiding competition for land between mitigation policies (like tree planting) and other nexus elements (like food production). [KM-B3]

● Delaying action on climate, then using huge amounts of land to reduce carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, will potentially have negative impacts on nature, water and food supplies, because of increased competition for land [B4]. Conserving and restoring ecosystems such as forests, soils, peatland and mangroves are particularly important strategies for biodiversity, human health, securing food and water and tackling climate change [C1, C2].

● Forests capture, filter, and regulate water through their vegetation and soils, ensuring clean and accessible freshwater for up to 75% of the population in 2005. [A2]

● Coastal ecosystems contribute to over 50% of ocean carbon sequestration. [A5]

● In south-central Niger, low-cost farmer-managed practices regenerated native trees and shrubs on 5 million hectares of agroforestry land, increasing cereal yields by 30%. [C2]

Financial and governance reform to preserve nature:

Financial and governance systems are driving nature’s decline, and urgently need reform [D3]. Options include increasing financial flows to biodiversity [SPM.12], addressing debt crises in low-income countries so highly indebted biodiverse countries can protect nature [KM-D2], and eliminating, phasing out and reforming harmful subsidies [KM-D2]

● Around half the world’s GDP is dependent on nature – equivalent to about $58 trillion in 2023 [A6].

● The ‘external’ costs of the fossil fuel, agriculture and fisheries sectors – not accounted for in decision-making – add up to $10-25 trillion per year [A6]

● Public subsidies for damaging activities total around another $1.7 trillion. Economic activities that cause direct damage to nature add up to $5.3 trillion per year. [A6]

● Meanwhile only around $200 billion annually is directed toward biodiversity improvement efforts – less than 1% of global GDP. [A6]

● Bridging the gap between what is committed now, and what is needed, would require an additional USD 300 billion–1 trillion per year [D3] The importance of sustainable diets and transforming the food system If food systems were transformed – through approaches like agroecology, improving nitrogen use efficiency, reducing food loss and waste, and the adoption of sustainable diets – it would enable the current agricultural area to meet the food needs of both current and future projected populations, whilst also benefiting the other nexus elements [B3].

● Protected areas for biodiversity conservation can create unintended consequences, from the need to increase food production outside of those areas. An approach that combines lower consumption and other food system transformations with nature conservation has more biodiversity benefits. [Box SPM.1, B3].

● Food policies could play a critical role in providing benefits for biodiversity and for the other nexus elements, but this is currently not happening. [KM-B3]

● In recent decades, increases in food production have improved people’s health helping to lower child mortality and lengthen human life spans. [KM-A1]. This growth has also caused other, significant issues; biodiversity loss, unsustainable water usage, reduced food diversity and increased pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. [A3].

● Malnutrition and unequal access to food security also still persists, with lower agrobiodiversity and diet diversity limiting health gains [KM-A1, A3]. In 2021, over two fifths of the global population was unable to afford a healthy diet. [A3].

● A global focus on food production, involving intensification of production, has positive impacts on nutritional health around the world, but negative impacts for biodiversity, water overconsumption and climate change. [B3]

Accounting for justice, equity and the rights of indigenous people is a necessity Developing countries, small island developing states, local communities and Indigenous Peoples are most affected by the decline of nature, water and food insecurity, risks to health and climate change [KM-A3]. Policy responses implemented in more equitable ways provide greater potential benefits across these interlocking challenges. Effectiveness and equity often are not trade-offs but support each other. [D2].

● 41% of people live in areas that have experienced extremely strong declines in biodiversity, 9% in areas that have experienced very high health burdens and 5% in areas with high levels of hunger and malnutrition. [A7]

● Indigenous Peoples and local communities have often successfully conserved biodiversity and sustainably managed other nexus elements using their knowledge and practices, arguing for a greater role for them as rightsholders and participants in decision-making. [KM-A3]

● Successful management of conservation areas is dependent on ensuring the direct participation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, in processes from co-design to governance (for example through rights-based approaches). [C1]

● In Brazil, formalizing and enforcing tenure rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities decreased deforestation and increased forest restoration. [C8]

Dr Maria Neira, Director of the Health and Climate Department, World Health Organization said that “The IPBES Nexus Assessment demonstrates that nature is not just a victim of crises—it is a powerful solution. Healthy, biodiversity-rich ecosystems, such as mangroves and tropical forests, play a vital role in mitigating climate change, controlling disease, and sustaining healthy diets and well-being. Investing in nature is an investment in our collective health and resilience.”

Marina Romanello, the Executive Director of the Lancet Countdown said that: Climate change is posing record threats to the health and wellbeing of people all around the world — the prognosis is not looking good. Over 58% of infectious diseases are aggravated by climate hazards, with rising temperatures and extreme weather expanding pathogens like malaria, dengue, and Zika. Indigenous communities, whose health and ecosystems are disproportionately more impacted, hold critical knowledge for solutions. Protecting their rights is the prescription for change—not just for sustaining biodiversity ecosystems, but as a foundation for global health, resilience, and survival.

According to Rukka Sombolinggi, Secretary General of the Indigenous organization, AMAN, Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara: -Biodiversity preservation is inseparable from climate, food, water, and health. Integrated solutions can create win-win outcomes, but equity and inclusion are non-negotiable. Indigenous Peoples, with our deep knowledge, are key to sustainable solutions. Excluding us from the conversation only undermines our collective future and the health of our planet. If we don’t collaborate effectively with Indigenous Peoples, we cant stop the global crisis.

The writer of this article is Dr. Seema Javed, an environmentalist & a communications professional in the field of climate and energy