By Gift Briton

In a first of its kind, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), will unveil a global report that seeks to offer policymakers a roadmap and tools to address the intertwined issues of biodiversity, climate change, health, food, and water.

IPBES is an intergovernmental organization established to improve the interface between science and policy on biodiversity and ecosystem services.

The Nexus Assessment Report will be launched during the 11th IPBES plenary session in Windhoek, Namibia’s capital in December.

The report produced over three years by 165 experts in 57 countries, is a first attempt to bridge the gaps and explore the interlinkages between these five critical environmental issues, offering solutions to address them as an integrated system rather than in isolation.

The report “For us, this is the most ambitious science report we have ever done. Each of these five issues already has a large body of scientific knowledge. But there has never been a report on a global level that put together the linkages between these five different elements to the extent that this report is going to do,” Rob Spaull, IPBES Head of Communications, told journalists during a pre-report launch briefing held virtually under the auspices of the Africa Science Media Centre (AfriSMC).

Rob Spaull, Head of Communications, IPBES

By adopting a systems approach, Spaull avers that the report seeks to break away from traditional siloed approaches and tackle these interconnected challenges holistically. The integrated perspective is vital as addressing one aspect of the system in isolation may lead to unintended negative consequences in other areas.

“For instance, there is a global push to plant trees for climate change mitigation. However, without informed decisions, this exercise may lead to unintended negative consequences on other parts of the ecosystem like biodiversity. If you are only planting one tree which is not indigenous, this can bring negative effects on the local ecosystem. It can lead to reduced water supply in that area, especially if you are planting trees that are not water-appropriate for that area,” Spaull explained.

He rightly notes that the report is a response to the growing demand and recognition by governments that isolated actions in one area of the environmental system can have far-reaching impacts on other components.

The report offers a multifaceted analysis of the interconnected environmental elements and is structured around four key themes: overview, future nexus interactions, response options, and governance.

First, it provides a detailed overview of each nexus element’s current status and challenges, shedding light on global trends, challenges, and interconnections.

For instance, Spaull highlights the significant global increase in food production over the past decade, leading to improved calorie intake but also contributing to biodiversity loss, water depletion, and increased greenhouse gas emissions.

Secondly, the report also delves into future scenarios of nexus interactions, modelling potential outcomes and interactions between the five environmental elements under different scenarios. It explores the implications of maintaining current practices versus adopting alternative approaches. The report also identifies scenarios that offer the greatest benefits across all nexus elements to guide policymakers towards sustainable solutions.

Thirdly, the report evaluates response options within each nexus element, weighing the potential positive and negative impacts on other parts of the system.  It assesses policy responses in terms of their overall benefits across the nexus to provide a comprehensive understanding of the implications of different interventions.

Lastly, the Report also addresses governance issues. It seeks to provide the necessary governance structures and mechanisms to support a systems approach in addressing environmental nexus issues effectively. It outlines what is required for the nexus systems approach to work in terms of governance by offering a road map of what science says would be necessary for governance to be effective in this regard.

Besides the Nexus report, IPBES will launch the Transformative Change Assessment report. This is in response to the ‘transformative change’ call by the intergovernmental bodies, private sector organizations and civil society to the nature and climate crises.

The IPBES Global Assessment Report found that meeting global sustainability targets for 2030 and beyond requires a fundamental, system-wide reorganization, including new paradigms.  This Assessment explores the specific elements that make up transformative change – societal, economic and institutional – and defines scenarios and pathways for achieving sustainability. The assessment also focuses on the indirect drivers of global biodiversity change

The report was produced over three years by 101 experts in 42 countries. It draws on roughly 7,000 references, and received more than 5,600 comments during two external reviews.