18 February 2010, Bari (Italy). The conference Mediterre held from 27 to 30 January marked the beginning of the International Year of Biodiversity in Italy.
Thousands of people attended the event which focused on sustainability, eco-tourism and the green economy. Special focus was placed on protected areas and their role in finding solutions and in combining participation, development and environmental sustainability.
A whole day was dedicated to biodiversity. Sebastian Winkler, Head of Countdown 2010 and Juan Marco Alvarez, Head of Business and Biodiversity Programme, brought IUCN’s insight into the discussions on the 2010 target and the engagement of the private sector in biodiversity conservation.
Along with several national experts, David Ainsworth from the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity presented some of the ongoing and planned celebrations for the International Year of Biodiversity taking place all over the world.
Giampiero Sammuri, President of Federparchi – a Countdown 2010 partner – expressed his satisfaction for the success of the event “The large attendance at this event is a clear signal of the increasing interest and desire to commit to environmental action in Italy”.
More information are available in Italian: