Joint FAO/UNEP Town Hall Meeting Opening Remarks

Joint FAO/UNEP Town Hall Meeting

Opening Remarks by

Dr. QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General

26 May 2021

Dear Inger,

Dear Colleagues,

1.     Today’s historic joint Town Hall meeting is a visible realization of the UN family working as ONE and the first of its kind.

2.     It demonstrates the dedication of our two organizations to work together towards a common objective: eradicating poverty, hunger and malnutrition, while protecting our planet, preserving our biodiversity and restoring our ecosystems.

3.     The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030 was adopted by the UN General Assembly in March 2019.

4.     It invited FAO and UNEP to lead the implementation of the Decade which will be officially launched on World Environment Day on 5 June.

5.     The Vision of the Decade is in line with the distinct, yet complimentary mandates of FAO and UNEP.

6.     The United Nations stands behind this globally important initiative, and FAO and UNEP will provide leadership, coordination and technical support throughout the next 10 years and beyond, to ensure that the vision of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration is realized.

7.     But we cannot do this alone.

8.     FAO and UNEP will work in collaboration with the secretariats of the Rio Conventions, and with all relevant multilateral environmental agreements and entities of the United Nations system, Members, civil society, the private sector and academia.

9.     International cooperation is essential in supporting our Members to implement their existing restoration pledges, which cover more than 1 billion hectares of land.

10.     Forthcoming global meetings on climate and biodiversity will provide an opportunity to further increase international ambition, and to accelerate implementation.

11.     The United Nations Food Systems Summit in September, as well as the Pre-Summit in July, will address the urgency for restoring our ecosystems.

12.     Restoration will also be a theme across all three Rio Conventions and their COPs.

13.     But long-term success will depend on catalyzing a global movement that will outgrow and outlive the 10 year timeframe.

14.     By engaging in restoration, everybody can contribute towards resetting our relationship with nature and showing it the reverence it deserves.

15.     For this, we need, above all, the full commitment of each and every employee of our two organizations.

Dear Colleagues,

16.     The purpose of today’s joint Town Hall meeting is to discuss how each one of us can get involved with the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration within our working environment and with our external partners.

17.     UNEP and FAO have a long-standing partnership, which spans more than 40 years.

18.     Over the years, we have focused our joint efforts on critical areas such as sustainable agri-food systems, ecosystem services, biodiversity in agriculture, forestry and fisheries, data and statistics, and international law and regulatory matters.

19.     The objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will not be achieved without large-scale restoration of degraded terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems globally and the transformation of agri-food systems.

20.     By bringing together our complementarity of expertise and the deep commitment amongst all our employees, we pledge to elevate our partnership through this UN Decade to collectively deliver on this call for action.

21.     The Decade is already impacting our work and is building momentum.

22.     At FAO, our new Strategic Framework seeks to support the 2030 Agenda through the transformation to MORE efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agri-food systems for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, leaving no one behind.

23.     And FAO’s Technical Committees on fisheries, agriculture and forestry have proposed that it be part of a Programme Priority Area on Biodiversity and Ecosystems Services in the Organization’s Medium-Term-Plan 2022-25.

Dear Colleagues,

24.     Ecosystem restoration encompasses a wide continuum of activities, because restoration can happen in many ways!

25.     Today’s presentations will introduce you to the available tools and resources that you can use to raise awareness to the importance of successful ecosystem restoration.

26.     We need you to be part of the global movement to achieve large scale ecosystem restoration, by working collectively and innovatively to achieve concrete results on the ground.

27.     All of us can get involved and promote the Decade in our working environment, with external partners and in our personal behavior.

28.     As FAO and UNEP employees you can contribute by:

• Familiarizing yourselves with the UN Decade Strategy and the 10 Actions it outlines;
• promoting the UN Decade in your events, networks and programs; and
• participating in one of the Five Taskforces on Monitoring, Best Practices, Science, Finance or Youth, established to support the implementation of the Decade.

29.     We can also contribute as individuals by:

• Knowing our local ecosystems and the ways we can protect and restore them;
• advocating for ecosystem restoration with family, friends and neighbors; and
• joining the #GenerationRestoration community on social media.

30.     The lives of millions of people depend on all of us working together to restore healthy and sustainable ecosystems for today and the future.

31.     Let’s work together to foster a global restoration culture

32.     Let’s work on restoration initiatives which will start in our offices and homes and scale-up across the planet.

33.     It is time to roll up our sleeves and get to work!

34.     Thank you.