Submitted by sude.figen on January 6, 2025
IPBES’s New Nexus Report: An Integrated Analysis of Environmental, Social, and Economic Crises
The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) has released its “Nexus Report,” which examines the intersections of environmental, social, and economic crises. The report highlights the costs of environmental degradation and the prioritization of short-term economic goals, emphasizing the importance of integrated approaches to address these interconnected challenges.
Biodiversity is crucial for food security, clean water, health, and climate stability. However, the last 50 years have seen a significant decline in biodiversity, weakening ecosystems and deepening global crises.
Key Highlights
● The Cost of Environmental Degradation: Ignoring the impacts of short-term financial gains on nature and the lack of accountability for environmental exploitation generates an economic cost of at least $10-25 trillion annually. This cost stems from biodiversity loss and declining water quality, reduced food security, and increasing health problems.
● Unequally Distributed Impacts: Loss of biodiversity has severe effects on food security and nutrition, water quality and availability, health, and resilience to climate change. These impacts are not evenly distributed; developing countries and vulnerable communities bear the greatest burdens.
● Misaligned Consumption and Policies: Excessive consumption and the disconnection between sectors exacerbate biodiversity loss and other global challenges. Current economic and political systems fail to mitigate these negative impacts.
● The Power of Integrated Solutions: The report underscores the interconnectedness of environmental, social, and economic crises. Solutions that prioritize one area often lead to adverse outcomes in others. Instead, integrated approaches addressing biodiversity, water, food, and health are more likely to yield net positive results.
A Roadmap for a Fairer and More Sustainable Future
The Nexus Report calls for mutually supportive policies to achieve sustainable development goals and stronger financial and legal mechanisms to curb environmental exploitation. It also emphasizes the critical role of local communities and Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge and experience in this process.
This new report strongly advocates for adopting holistic approaches not only for environmental conservation but also for fostering social well-being and economic stability.
Click to access the summary version of the report
