Source: United States Senator for Delaware Christopher Coons
WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.); Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex and the President of African Parks; and Hailemariam Desalegn Boshe, former Prime Minister of Ethiopia, published an op-ed today in the Huffington Post that calls for conservation investments in Africa that are managed locally, prioritize human development, and bridge the public and private sectors. The three met earlier this year to discuss innovative forms of long-term financing for Africa’s protected areas, which are critical to the health of our planet because of the biodiversity and carbon they hold. Later in the year, Senator Coons and Prince Harry traveled to Africa to meet with the communities partnering with African Parks around the Akagera and Bazaruto Archipelago National Parks, and Prime Minister Desalegn helped lead the Africa Protected Areas Congress in Rwanda.
The op-ed comes amidst two major events in global conservation – this week’s U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington, and the COP15 Biodiversity Conference in Montreal. On Monday, Senator Coons and the International Conservation Caucus Foundation hosted a reception with African heads of state at the U.S. Capitol to learn more about conservation efforts throughout the continent.
Additionally, last month, Senator Coons introduced a new bipartisan bill with his fellow co-chairs of the International Conservation Caucus and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), calling for the creation of a new U.S. Foundation for International Conservation. The Foundation would fund public-private partnerships to support local communities around the world in effectively managing protected and conserved areas. Senator Coons is Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, and a co-chair of both the Bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus and the International Conservation Caucus.
The Huffington Post: The Future of Conservation Is Taking Shape in Africa
While the three of us were born in different countries with different backgrounds, we’ve come together to urge the public and private sectors to find common ground to better care for our planet and its people – starting by learning from and supporting Africa’s communities.
With the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit occurring this week and as the Montreal biodiversity conference continues, it’s time for the international community to respond to this year’s Kigali Call to Action by supporting a new approach to conservation: one that is led locally, prioritizes human development, and bridges the public and private sectors.
The three of us met this past spring to discuss this shared vision and the need for innovative ways to finance conservation – in particular, the long-term management of the world’s most critical protected areas.
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For too long, conservation funding was based around telling others how to do things from afar, instead of learning from, and empowering, the communities on the ground. We see a better path forward in scaling conservation efforts that listen to and benefit people.
The future of conservation is being shaped – right now – in Africa, by Africans, and what they’re creating is an effective, local model of conservation that can be adopted around the world.
The full op-ed is available HERE.
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