This year, the Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme and its World Network of Biosphere Reserve (WNBR) will be involved in several events that form an important part of the international biodiversity agenda and help implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The MAB programme will contribute to the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Youth Forum (30-31 January 2018), the multi-stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals of the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (5-6 June 2018) and the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) in July 2018, under the theme ‘Transformation towards sustainable and resilient societies’.
Participation in these events provides the UNESCO MAB World Network with a significant opportunity to share our collective impact and demonstrate how biosphere reserves play a unique role in tackling the SDGs.
With the support of the UNESCO Liaison Office in New York, the MAB Programme is planning to organize a series of briefing and side events. We would like to ask you to participate.
How can you contribute?
1) You can submit case study(ies) from your country/biosphere reserve(s) demonstrating how your biosphere reserve(s) are working to implement the SDGs. Please use the format indicated in the form below and send us your submissions by 15 April 2018.
2) You can produce and send us a 60-second film on how biosphere reserves are uniquely tackling the Sustainable Development Goals (guidelines below). The best movies will be presented at the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) in New York and at the MAB Council session and will be hosted on the MAB and UNESCO social media pages. The MAB Secretariat will organize a webinar to guide you through the creative process on Thursday, 1 February 2018. These will take place at 10 am Paris time (English), 3 pm (French) and 5 pm (Spanish). If you wish to participate in one of these sessions, please contact us at: MAB.circular.letters(at)unesco.org.
3) You can send us scientific and communication material such as leaflets, publications and posters on the implementation of SDGs within biosphere reserves that we can display and share during the side events to be organized at the HLPF in New York, and at the MAB Council 2018 session.
4) You can inform and mobilize your delegations in New York, contribute to the country voluntary report, and make explicit references to MAB and the WNBR.
5) You can write to us and indicate your interest in providing support and participating.
We hope to make a decisive impact in 2018 with our presence at these events, write an international MAB success story based on your unique and diverse contributions and share collectively the benefits of our increased visibility and credibility, as well as engage with new stakeholders through the side events, sharing of communication material and use of social media.