Honorary Doctorate for Anne Larigauderie (IPBES)
“When you give nature a chance, a difficult situation can quickly be reversed. However, in order to do that, decision-makers must have the knowledge they need to take the right measures” - Anne Larigauderie
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Dr. Larigauderie was awarded the honorary doctorate at UiB on May 24th 2024 for her central role and outstanding contributions in developing the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), also known as Naturpanelet in Norwegian. It has a similar role for nature as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Klimapanelet in Norwegian, has for climate change.
IPBES was established in 2012 to strengthen the science-policy interface for biodiversity and ecosystem services for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, long-term human well-being and sustainable development. Larigauderie has led the organization since 2014. IPBES is now recognized as the leading global authority on the state of knowledge and science about biodiversity, ecosystem services, and nature’s contributions to people; and IPBES plays a critically important role in informing decision-makers and facilitating better science-informed policy across scales, sectors, and knowledge systems around the world.
In recent years, IPBES and IPCC have collaborated closely, and clearly communicated how the climate crisis and the nature crisis are connected and must be solved in conjunction, where IPBES has been essential in highlighting the understanding that nature is the basis for a good society.
Collaboration and knowledge sharing across borders and cultures
As the Executive Secretary for IPBES Larigauderie believes it’s important to facilitate collaboration and knowledge sharing across professional fields, national borders and cultures. IPBES' work is now important for political processes and decision-makers worldwide, in addition to contributing to an informed public debate. The IPBES Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services from 2019, is an example of this; “One conclusion that received a lot of attention from this report is that around one million animal and plant species are now being threatened with extinction. This struck a nerve around the world, as it tells something about the magnitude of the problem - and the consequences it could have if we don’t change course”, Larigauderie says.
Another example of IPBES' influence on major international processes took place in December 2022, when 196 nations signed the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KM-GBF), Naturavtalen in Norwegian. The agreement - which is heavily based on the science and frameworks provided by IPBES - acknowledges and incorporates societal transformation as a necessary prerequisite to solve global environmental challenges. Since the necessary knowledge had already been provided, the discussions at the summit were not about the facts, but rather about political solutions and compromises in order to be able to agree on a framework.
Biodiversity matters
Larigauderie is pleased to see growing attention given to biodiversity over the years; “My impression is that we are moving in the right direction. Ten years ago there was not much awareness of biodiversity. Climate change had come on the radar, but biodiversity was still far down on the agenda. Today I believe that there is greater awareness of the topic, and I also believe that the work of IPBES has played a role here”, she says, and adds: “But there is still a long way to go, especially when it comes to balancing a sustainable approach to biodiversity and various economic interests. Another big challenge is to agree on the most important questions and priorities globally, as the situation differs greatly in various parts of the world”.
Give nature a chance
Larigauderie is driven by her passion for nature, working to highlight how reliant we are on biodiversity and advocating for the crucial role science has in solving the challenges we face. “It is also important for me not to discourage people in discussions about biodiversity. The good thing about biodiversity is that when you give nature a chance, a difficult situation can quickly be reversed”, she says. “However, in order to do that, decision-makers must have the knowledge they need to take the right measures. In our work to promote this knowledge, we really appreciate the support we are receiving from people all over the world”.
Honorary doctorate lecture and more!
Dr. Anne Larigauderie gave an honorary doctorate lecture entitled “IPBES: A Decade at the Crossroads of Biodiversity Science for Better Policy and Action”. In this lecture, Dr. Larigauderie reflected on the development of IPBES, focusing on its growing role in the global science-policy landscape. She also discussed the impacts that IPBES has had on science and scientists, on international policy, and in delivering actions for nature and nature’s contributions to people. Biodiversity and nature’s contributions to people underpin almost every aspect of human lives and livelihoods. They help produce food, provide clean water, regulate climate, and control disease. Yet they are being depleted and degraded faster now than at any other point in human history. See the the recording of the lecture here.
Nature's status in Norway
Anne Larigauderie got a lot of media attention during her visit to Norway, and she has commented on both Norwegian deep sea mining, and urban development in Norwegian cities. Her thoughts on this can be read in this NRK interview about deep sea mining, and this TV2 interview on how cities are the keys to solving the nature crisis. The head of IPBES was also interviewed by BT, where she stated that children should spend more time in nature, to have a stronger connection to it (interview can be read here).
More Norwegian news items and interviews with Anne Larigauderie are linked below.
