Talks on plight of planet begin

HOT TOPIC: ISLANDS IN DANGER, SEAS RISE

Key news is the update of the Red List of endangered and threatened species.

Some 8 000 heads of state, policymakers and environmentalists convene in Hawaii this week for the world’s largest gathering aimed at forging a path forward on the planet’s toughest conservation problems.

US President Barack Obama was among the world leaders in Honolulu as the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) opens its World Conservation Congress, held every four years in a different location around the globe. He gave an address yesterday.

This year, the conference theme of Planet at the Crossroads is aimed at exposing the plight of island nations that are at risk of disappearing in the coming decades due to rising seas.

Arguments are expected on hotly debated issues such as what to do about domestic ivory markets which lead to the killing of elephants for their tusks, and how to feed the world’s growing population without exhausting its natural resources.

Obama addressed the Pacific Island Conference of Leaders and the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Honolulu yesterday.

A key piece of news will be the update of the IUCN’s Red List of endangered and threatened species. There will also be reports on efforts to balance oil and gas exploration with whale conservation and the establishment of biodiversity areas. –