The theme of this year’s observance of World Environment Day, June 5, is Land Restoration, Desertification and Drought Resilience. The theme provides insight on the positive action being taken globally to reverse negative trends in loss of productive ecosystems through destruction and degradation of the natural environment.
Here in Trinidad and Tobago, both government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) attempt to push against the tide of environmental destruction coming from careless actions of some, borne out of sheer ignorance of the impact of these actions or from negative attitudes, the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Network (Bes-Net) said in a media release. From the perspective of Government, there is an obligation to meet particular national and international standards and the adoption of targets to support sustainable development goals.
While these are articulated in official documents and binding agreements, the transmission of information of the who, what, why, how and when is sometimes lacking, insufficient or unsustained. Often, communication is “seasonal,” occurring at the occasion of special observances, such as tomorrow’s World Environment Day, or when major incidents come to light, such as oil leaking from a damaged and abandoned sea vessel which threatens our coast, or destruction of sea turtle nests by an unknown land developer, Bes-Net said.
Working together to achieve goals
The Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Network (Bes-Net) project is jointly implemented by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) (UNEP-WCMC) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and it is funded by the Government of Germany (through the International Climate Initiative) and SwedBio. It has been implemented nationally by the Ministry of Planning and Development over the past two-and-a half-years as Bes-Net TT facilitated by the UNDP. The project took the approach of multi-stakeholder engagement, working with various bodies and individuals to improve understanding of pollinators and pollinator management in TT.
The approach of projects as this one, enables a direct interface between the implementing team and stakeholders, allowing for greater impact and uptake of knowledge, skills and results. While this was a small project – both in terms of time and budget – a variety of activities was accomplished in fulfilment of three key foci: science, policy and practice. These activities supplied new information on key aspects of our biodiversity heritage through research activities, on our native bees, seagrass flowering cycles and pollinators, and influence of habitat integrity on pollinating bat populations.
Small actions can make a difference
Our local pollinator species, like others around the globe are directly impacted by changes which have occurred due to climate change. Their habitats have been reduced, their access to water restricted and their reproductive cycles and access to
