Happy in the Mangroves

Following the Internet phenomenon of the “Be Happy” Videos, it was decided at the inception workshop for the GEF Blue Forest project, hosted in Abu Dhabi in partnership with AGEDI, that all the Blue Carbon projects within Ā the programme would create their own “Be Happy” Videos.

Filmed during theĀ National Blue Carbon ProjectĀ Field Work, the video was launched at the Eye on Earth Summit 2015, creating an exciting buzz around alternative outreach methods inspiring all to create their own “Be Happy” videos.

Thanks to all the fieldwork volunteers who appear in the video and the scientists who took time out from their data collection to dance and Be Happy…

Launch of the National Blue Carbon Project Report

The Ministry of Environment and Water (MOEW) today launched the National Blue Carbon Project report, marking the first national quantification of the UAEā€™s Blue Carbon stocks, which will help guide decision-making in coastal ecosystem preservation and climate change mitigation. The Project was a collaborative initiative managed and facilitated by a partnership between MOEW and the Abu Dhabi Global Environmental Data Initiative (AGEDI), and implemented in collaboration with the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD) alongside the local authorities of the other emirates.

National Blue Carbon Project ā€“ Decision-maker Summary

National Blue Carbon Project ā€“ Executive Summary

Healthy oceans critical to achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals

Abu Dhabi, [7 October 2015]Ā 

At Eye on Earth Summit 2015 today members of the Oceans and Blue Carbon Special Initiative launched ā€œThe Oceans and Usā€, a new publication that highlights the critical role healthy oceans play in achieving the recently adopted UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Co-written by the Abu Dhabi Global Environmental Data Initiative (AGEDI), GRID-Arendal, the UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), The Nature Conservancy, the University of Western Brittany Brest (UBO), and the Marine Ecosystem Services Partnership, the publication outlines the essential nature of conserving and restoring marine and coastal ecosystems, and the related needs for data and policy actions. According to the entities, the role of healthy marine and coastal ecosystems for sustainable development is neither fully understood, nor fully integrated, into decision-making and planning.

ā€œWe found that healthy corals, mangroves and other marine and coastal ecosystems provide a myriad of benefits to sustainable development,ā€ said Jane Glavan, AGEDI Partnerships Manager. ā€œFor Abu Dhabi this includes coastline stabilization, water purification, tourism value and, importantly, the sequestration and storage of carbon dioxide. A better understanding of marine ecosystem services is important to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals as it enables informed policy choices on conserving and restoring valuable natural assets.ā€

Christian Neumann, Marine Ecosystem Services Project Manager at GRID-Arendal, stated: ā€œWith 200 million people on the planet employed directly or indirectly through marine fisheries alone, we simply cannot afford the continued decline of ocean health. Healthy marine and coastal ecosystems are indispensable in our fight against poverty, to provide adequate nutrition, health and employment to the people on the planet, and to mitigate and adapt to climate change.ā€

The analysis undertaken by the partnership showed that the conservation and sustainable use of the ocean and its resources, an SDG in itself, supports an additional nine out of the 17 goals. Capturing the value of marine and coastal ecosystem servicesā€”the benefits people obtain from the oceanā€”is facilitated by strong communication between science and policy-making, ensuring reliable, objective and widely available data is provided to support informed decisions.

ā€œThere is growing global recognition among world and local leaders that healthy marine and coastal ecosystems have an essential role in our efforts to achieving a more sustainable future. This understanding has the power to bring together conservation and development communities. Only then can we harness this powerful, sustainable and global natural factory to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals we have set for the people of this planet,ā€ said Corinne Martin, Programme Officer Marine, UNEP-WCMC.

The full report is available to download hereĀ 

More information about the Eye on Earth Summit, speakers and new project proposals can be found at www.eoesummit.org.

 

 

 

 

Third session of the Plenary of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

Abu Dhabi, UAE –Ā AGEDI joined a UAE delegation to the third session of the plenary of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), which was held from 12 to 17 January, 2015, in Bonn, Germany. IPBES aims to be the leading intergovernmental body for assessing the state of the planet’s biodiversity and its ecosystems. Discussions focused on communications and stakeholder engagement strategies, budget, strategic partnerships, rules of procedure, and on institutional arrangements for the UN collaborative partnership. Four regional sessions on regional assessments were also held.

Ecosystems Services Assessment Participatory Workshop

Abu Dhabi, UAE –Ā The Ecosystems Services Assessment project commenced this month with a participatory modelling workshop. The participatory modelling process combines available data and expert knowledge from key stakeholders to analyse the relative supply and demand of ecosystem services. The project is part of the extension work from Phase I of the Abu Dhabi Blue Carbon Demonstration Project. This work aims to investigate the Phase I results ā€“ completed in April 2014 ā€“ and to assess the full range of ecosystem benefits that, together with carbon sequestration, should be taken account of in complex, land-use decision-making.

The EcoCity World Summit

The EcoCity World Summit – a biennial cross-disciplinary gathering of all involved in building sustainable cities – is to come to Abu Dhabi city, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, in 2015. The Summit organisers, the Ecocity Conference Series Relay Committee, awarded the host status to the UAE capital after what it called a ā€˜clearly outstanding proposalā€™ submitted by Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau ā€“ a dedicated entity of Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority ā€“ in conjunction with the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi,Ā AGEDI,Ā and with the support of Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Company and Etihad Airways.

 

New infographic released to explain Blue Carbon Ecosystems in Abu Dhabi

AĀ new infographic was released in Abu Dhabi as part of the Abu Dhabi Blue Carbon Demonstration Project, to explain the Blue Carbon Ecosystems in Abu Dhabi and their potential value.

Download the PDF Here:Ā  InfoGraphic explaining Blue Carbon Ecosystems in Abu Dhabi and their potential value (10569 downloads )