Making the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration Count

Lance Lloyd
WP Biosphere Foundation Project Officer

The UN (www.decadeonrestoration.org/), the Australian Government and now fourteen prominent Australasian environmental restoration organisations are behind making the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration count.  The 14 groups recently announced the formation of a consortium to collaboratively support the recommendations of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration – with more in the process of signing up (see https://www.miragenews.com/darwin-agreement-to-support-un-decade-on-571908/).

The ‘Darwin Agreement’, was initiated at the SERA2021 Darwin conference (see https://www.seraustralasia.org/) which discussed the ongoing work in restoration in Australia.  The agreement commits the groups to promoting the goals of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, with particular focus on:

• Reinforcing and clarifying our common purpose to help conserve and restore Australasian ecosystems
• Promoting public awareness of the UN Decade as a focal opportunity for integrated restorative action by all sectors of society
• Promoting best practice ecosystem restoration
• Supporting a united communication voice around the UN Decade
• Fourteen prominent Australasian environmental restoration organisations, including Greening Australia, have announced the formation of a consortium to collaboratively support the recommendations of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.

Tein McDonald and Bruce Clarkson outline some of the background to the UN initiative and activities in Australia and New Zealand which will help guide the efforts for the next decade – read their paper here:

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/emr.12436

Restoration is necessary across all of our landscapes and ecosystems.  There are many actions you can do, large and small, to help to retain ecosystems, reduce our impacts upon them and to repair ecosystems to optimise potential for humanity to revive the natural world that supports us all.