To combat climate change effectively, governments need to ensure that they have access to the best available science in order to make the best policy decisions and to be able to allocate the right resources.

In other words, policy makers have to be knowledgable and to understand the consequences of their decisions and how it impacts the environment, a meeting of over 100 policy makers from around the world heard in Bonn, Germany, this week.

They learned that there can be severe consequences to the environment if governments are not guided by careful analysis. Poor climate change policy choices can damage ecosystems and speed up the loss of biodiversity. 

“The bottom line is that policymakers are required to balance several challenges, and need the best scientific evidence to chart the most sustainable course,” said Professor Guy Midgley, an expert on global change biology from the University of Stellenbosch (South Africa).

He was addressing more than 100 Government representatives at the fifth annual plenary session of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) in Bonn, Germany, earlier this week.

Protecting Biodiversity

Professor Midgley pointed out that governments should protect biodiversity which can make a huge contribution to climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Biodiversity prevents the extinction of species and allows organisms to adapt to changes in the environment. It creates well operated ecosystems that cleanses water and air resources and also provides a wide range of materials and foods for survival, ensuring every species plays a role, no matter how small.

An example of protecting biodiversity includes reducing deforestation in tropical regions which can make huge contributions to climate mitigation when combined with other efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

On the other hand, afforestation could harm biodiversity with newly planted forests replacing tropical grassland to help limit greenhouse gas emissions. However, tropical grassland already have very rich ecosystems supporting unique biodiversity that forests don't provide. 

Even focusing on biofuels that may generate fewer emissions than fossil fuels involves clearing natural vegetation for concentrated biofuel crops. These crops can reduce carbon storage and could cause damage to biodiversity and ecosystem services.

The need to increase food security also conflicts with climate change responses.

“New approaches, such as ecosystem-based approaches to adaptation, could help to reduce such conflicts,” said Professor Midgley.

Sir Robert Watson, Chair of IPBES said at the session that “Successful climate action can never be at the expense of biodiversity, because stabilizing the climate is only possible over the long-term by ensuring the health and protection of biodiversity and ecosystems”.

United Nations (UN) Climate Secretariat, Richard Kinley also told delegates at the session that “the interrelation between climate change, biodiversity and human well-being is clear and compelling”.

"Together we can generate extraordinary outcomes towards the safe and sustainable future envisioned in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals”.

In November the 23th Conference of the Parties to the Climate Convention will be held in Bonn, Germany.

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) was established in 2012 by member States. It provides policymakers with objective scientific assessments regarding earth's biodiversity, ecosystems and the benefits they provide to people, including the tools and means to protect and sustainably use vital natural assets.