ILO participates in a webinar on nature-based solutions

News | 22 May 2020

On May 22, which coincides with the International Day for Biological Diversity, the ILO participated in a webinar on nature-based solutions organized by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature). A wide range of participants from governments, international organizations, private companies as well as non-profit organizations exchanged their views and ideas for working on and moving forward with nature-based solutions. The IUCN defines nature-based solutions as “actions to protect, sustainably manage and restore natural or modified ecosystems that address societal challenges effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits.”
 

At the webinar, the ILO highlighted the relevance of nature-based solutions to the world of work. Citing research results indicating that 2 billion people are currently living in fragile and conflict affected situations and poverty is concentrated in environmentally fragile and conflict affected situations, the ILO called for collective actions to look at alternative technologies and move towards nature-based solutions and environmentally sustainable methods that create decent jobs. The ILO also highlighted that with the additional socio-economic impact and working hours that will be lost by COVID-19, it will be ever more important to see how nature-based solutions can also be labour-intensive and cost-effective. This approach will create multiple wins – addressing poverty, inequality, offering decent jobs and incomes and protecting the environment to protect biodiversity and build needed climate resilient infrastructure.

Click here to watch the recorded webinar.