GRAND CHALLENGES FOR BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY - THE SOUTHERN AFRICA EXPERIENCE

This conference will unpack the challenges and opportunities that are attracting partners from all Lusophone countries, and those from the wider global community, to research, resolve and to implement actions that address issues threatening the biosphere and ultimately, human wellbeing. Leading experts on climate change, land transformation, the impacts of wild fires and invasive species on natural ecosystems, the conservation of iconic plant and animal species, and the management of large protected areas, will bring the latest scientific and practical results to the audience.

Southern Africa embraces several of the most biologically diverse, but vulnerable, ecosystems on the planet. It is also a region of rapid development and dynamic social and economic vibrancy. With a long-term experience in addressing the tight links between biodiversity and human development, this region has much to contribute to the search of development pathways that nurture rather than destroy the systems that support life.
An exciting programme will include presentations, debates, book launches and the screening of the recently completed film on a remarkable modern adventure: ‘Into the Okavango’.

EXPLORING OPPORTUNITIES FOR COLLABORATION: PORTUGAL/SOUTHERN AFRICA
For many decades, north/south collaboration in research in southern Africa, especially in Anglophone countries, has been very active, with considerable mutual benefits. Such activities within Lusophone countries have yet to develop fully, despite recent initiatives and successes. This conference will present the efforts of CIBIO-InBIO (Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Universidade do Porto) in this regard, through the UNESCO Chair Life on Land and the TwinLabs program that seek to stimulate greater collaboration between Lusophone and Anglophone countries in the region, and between institutions in the ‘north’ and ‘south’, and especially in terms of ‘south/south’ partnerships.

In collaboration with the Serralves Foundation and to provide stimulus to the launch of the UNESCO Chair Life on Land, speakers with extensive experience in collaborative biodiversity and environmental research in southern Africa will present keynote lectures on topics of wide interest and as a basis for future interaction between Portuguese scientists and institutions in southern Africa.

The conference is free but requires registration. 

To see the programme, please click here.

For more details and registration, please click here.