The new great threat to biodiversity

Climate change is a growing concern to society. Since the mid-1800s global temperatures have increased by about 0.6C, impacting the entire world, from low-lying islands in the tropics to the vast Polar Regions. Current climate change predictions estimate further increases in temperatures of 1.4C to 5.8C by 2100. This will undoubtedly have severe consequences on biodiversity. Climate change is already forcing living organisms and ecosystems to adapt either through shifting habitat, changing life cycles, or the development of new physical traits. Those species that are unable to adapt are facing extinction. In fact, predictions estimate that up to 1 million species may become extinct as a result of climate change.

The biodiversity safety net

The links between biodiversity and climate change run both ways: biodiversity is threatened by human-induced climate change but, biodiversity resources can reduce the impacts of climate change on people and production. The conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity can strengthen ecosystem resilience, improving the ability of ecosystems to provide critical services in the face of increasing climatic pressures. These range from reducing the amount of CO2 released in the atmosphere, to mitigating the impacts of climate change effects such as, flooding and drought, famine, and health.

Recognizing this, the Belgian Biodiversity Platform organizes a meeting with an open science conference on Biodiversity and Climate Change. The goal of this meeting is twofold:

• The open science conference will offer an overview of the scientific knowledge on present and predicted impacts of climate change on biodiversity, with a focus on research being conducted in Belgium;
• During an electronic conference and round table discussion suggestions for research priorities will be formulated, in order to optimize the relevance and coherence of the Belgian research policy. In addition, the conference will suggest targeted research and conservation actions to be taken in Belgium to mitigate the impact of climate change on biodiversity.

The open science conference is scheduled for May 21; the outcome of the conference will be presented at a public event during the 2007 Biodiversity Day on May 22.

Results of the conference are available from here.