Protection of Nature led by IUCN

International Union for the Protection of Nature (IUCN) was founded in 1948 in Fontainebleau, France. Since then the IUCN has been working on protecting nature through working with governments, NGOs and research. Their vision,

Our vision is a just world that values and conserves nature. Our mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable.

www.iucn.org – 10/03/2016

The IUCN is mainly involved in the conservation of biodiversity, by tackling climate change, sustainable development and food security in countries around the world. It forms the basis as a neutral forum for governments, NGOs, scientists and business as well as local communities to find practical solutions to development change and conservation. Here is a little more about them:

The IUCN runs 4 year projects guided by their Global Programme (latest one finishes 2016), which is approved by it’s members and follow a lengthy consultation process. The organisation is not solely about working to enhance wildlife, but to work with people and nature to create a sustainable future for us all. When we value and conserve nature we are also value and conserving our own way of life, for without nature we could not exist.

We rely on nature solely for our food for example and should we not have taken measure to ensure nature was conserved our food supply would be seriously affected. We can see in areas where serious flooding or drought have affect what would otherwise be fertile regions has resulted in a fall of food production. Bees are on a worldwide decline, and they are directly responsible for pollination of our fruit and vegetables.

I have been writing often about our need to align our needs with those of nature. We cannot exclude people for the benefit of nature and wildlife, nor can we solely give precedence to people over wildlife and nature. Both are inextricably intertwined. We are realising this more and more as we progress, not only through our awareness of increased climate change, but by the loss of species and the over use of our lands.

Our oceans are being plummeted daily, our land is being cleared to allow for water hungry crops and our wildlife is being squeezed to extinction. It is important that we face the growing concern voiced by so many today, in a way that we can get most of humanity to work together to solve this ‘condition’. The condition that if we continue to let others do something about it, it will never get done.

The IUCN is a torch bearer in this regard, influencing Government decisions and working with NGOs. More importantly, they are working with people on the ground to educate and create change while we still can.

Make sure you check out what they are doing by clicking on their website at www.iucn.org.