Climate and Biodiversity

How do we work together to better manage climate change and protect biodiversity?

Natural Resource and Biodiversity Conservation

Gulf News

Climate and Biodiversity Week to spur the world into action to protect our planet

We stand at the brink of a crucial moment in time - a moment in which we must take decisive collective action to protect our planet, and the life it sustains, for future generations. It is an opportunity for us to take our place in history as the generation that stepped up to halt climate change, and transform human activity to operate within Earth's planetary boundaries. 

Expo 2020 Dubai's Climate & Biodiversity Week convenes government decision-makers, business leaders, youth advocates and our millions of visitors to address the greatest challenge of our time and generate solutions critical to the future of our civilisation and the health of our planet. 

What's your Promise to our Planet?

How do we work together to better manage climate change and protect biodiversity? 

C&B week PPP info extract

Climate & Biodiversity Week Programme

Learnings and insights from the World Majlis conversations on Climate and Biodiversity

World Majlis: Insights from Climate & Biodiversity Week

Insight Report from Climate and Biodiversity Week

Program for People and Planet - Empowerment Workshop 

Conservation for Hope at Climate and Biodiversity Week

Cultures in Conversation Climate Change in the Classroom Living Room Street and Beyond event at Terra the Auditorium

Eleni Giokos with Sabrin Rahman and Erik Becker at the World Green Economy Summit 2021

Panel Discussion - Climate and Biodiversity Day 2

Image Gallery

Climate & Biodiversity Week

Expo 2020 Dubai Climate & Biodiversity Week

Climate and Biodiversity Week

We live at the epicentre of an ecological catastrophe with unimaginable consequences. Yet, there has to emerge a global organic consciousness and a genuine global political will and consensus to advance the agenda for a true transformative pathway and architecture, in the service of humanity and the entire human family. Our task is to highlight the urgency for the need to acknowledge the inseparability of biodiversity and climate change, and the existence of a body of knowledge that can pave the way to avoid devastation and calamities across the world. Our dialogue is aimed at underlining the existence of this nascent and marginalised organic consciousness, its moral vitality, its political-economic essence, and the necessity for climate justice, equality and equity worldwide.

Climate Change In The Classroom, Living Room, Street and Beyond

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Witness an intergenerational exchange of knowledge on a global stage, highlighting the necessity of climate justice, equality and equity worldwide.

Screening of "the Tower" by artist Wilf Speller

Keynote Presentation by Ambassador Lumumba Di-Aping

Intergenerational Dialogue on Global Climate Justice and Equity

Cultures in Conversation Climate Change in the Classroom Living Room Street and Beyond event at Terra the Auditorium Web Image m3301

Cultures in Conversation Climate Change in the Classroom Living Room Street and Beyond event at Terra the Auditorium Web Image m3304

Cultures in Conversation Climate Change in the Classroom Living Room Street and Beyond event at Terra the Auditorium Web Image m3363

Peru Feature image 

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Each year, residents of Peru’s Quehue District re-weave Q’Eswachaka, the last of the Incan rope bridges, in a custom that goes back 600 years. Now, at the Peru Pavilion, you can witness this ancient tradition in real time, as part of a wide-ranging showcase of Peru’s timeless culture. The pavilion’s elegant, loom-like exterior is a reference to Peruvian traditional woven crafts but, from nutrient-rich superfoods to staggering ancient ruins, there’s much to explore from one of the world’s most biodiverse nations.

Savour delicious Peruvian superfoods, such as quinoa

Witness the re-weaving of the last Inca bridge, Q’Eswachaka

Explore the natural riches of one of the world’s “mega-diverse” countries

Peru Features

Peru

The Peru Pavilion is a large rectangular structure wrapped in a woven-looking façade, like a vibrantly coloured traditional blanket draped over a grand table. This woven element, which is composed of layered, multi-coloured vertical lines, surrounds the entire pavilion, curving up on the bottom left side to reveal an open, shaded courtyard and performance space. On the lower right, the pavilion’s tall entryway slices through the woven exterior and plunges down a glowing tunnel. 

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A traditional 

Peru Pavilion

Alla Semenovskaya is an interdisciplinary researcher and consultant based in Russia, with a background in strategic business development and launching emerging technologies. She is a graduate in Asian and African Studies from National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE) in Moscow, and a fellow of the postgraduate design-research program «The Terraforming» of the Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design. Her recent work has specialised in research projects and site specific collaborative practices, exploring comparative governance, climate and environmental policies, and implications of computational technologies, which has been displayed in various formats including publications and films. 

Alla Semenovskaya

Her work uses the traditional Shipibo-Conibo or Kené design from a contemporary perspective in which she incorporates mythological and sacred characters and beings. Her visual repertoire is made up of aspects of the flora, fauna, daily life, traditions of the Shipibo-Konibo people, as well as her visions with ayahuasca. Her interest in the knowledge of new techniques has made her a great researcher and disseminator of painting techniques based on earth, pigments and natural dyes. She learned the technique of embroidery and drawing in her family environment. She studied nursing at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos. She is currently part of the Association of women shinanya nomabo, in Pucallpa. 

Elena Valera

Lara Rudar is a multimedia artist, filmmaker and environmental advocate studying at Jumeirah English Speaking School Dubai. Last year, she was named one of the 20 Official UAE Ambassadors for Nature and has been working with Emirates-Nature WWF and the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi to empower UAE youth with the experiences, knowledge, and skills to tackle environmental issues. Internationally, she has spoken at numerous panels hosted by the United Nations as a WSIS Youth Campaigner and represented Turkey at the ‘Youth4Climate: Driving Ambition’ conference in Milan to develop concrete proposals for Pre-COP26 in Milan and COP26 in Glasgow. She is currently the Education Coordinator at the Re-Earth Initiative, an international youth-led climate organisation.

Lara Rudar

Artist & Filmmaker, Official UAE Ambassador for Nature, UN Youth PreCOP26 Delegate

Lumumba Di-Aping has dedicated his career in both the public and private sectors addressing the inequality that hinders the development of the Global South. He started his career as a strategy consultant and then investment banker. Lumumba then moved on to serve as Ambassador and Deputy Head of the Sudan Mission to the United Nations. During that tenure, he was Lead Negotiator for Developing Countries on Energy, Environment, Trade and Global Governance and Chairman of the G77+China Group -  A block of 132 developing UN member states which represents Global South in negotiation on reform of the International Financial Institutions (IMF/WB), UNFCCC and multiple other social, political and economic issues. Lumumba served as Chairman of the African Group and chief negotiator for developing countries.

Lumumba Di-Aping

ilma Jurkute is the Executive Director of Alserkal, overseeing Alserkal Avenue, Alserkal Arts Foundation, and Alserkal Advisory. Her professional and academic experience is centered on placemaking and the development of sustainable, community-centric creative economies with both global and regional impact. Vilma has been instrumental in the evolution and growth of Alserkal and its initiatives. Since joining the organisation in 2012, she led the $20 million expansion of Alserkal Avenue into a 500,000 square foot cultural destination that is now home to over 70 prominent cultural organisations and entrepreneur-led businesses. Under her leadership, Alserkal has grown into a socially responsible and forward-thinking cultural enterprise. 

Vilma Jurkute

​​Wilf Speller is an artist and filmmaker, born and based in London, UK. Their work emerges from a research and writing practice that reflects on future imaginaries and their representation. Of late, Wilf’s work primarily focuses on the ideological and aesthetic dogmas that shape the spatial politics of late capitalism and the climate crisis. Wilf has established the Institute for Archipelago Thinking (IAT), an independent think-tank with the aim to better understand the legal and sovereign status of the world’s remaining land masses. The IAT hopes that through the study of ‘pre-flood’ models of island management we will be able to gain a better understanding of the legal status of ‘post-land-based states’ and the ever-growing numbers of ‘landless people(s)’. 

Wilf Speller

Cultures in Conversation | Climate Change In The Classroom, Living Room, Street and Beyond

World Expos have always been meeting places for people across cultures and geographies; an opportunity to come together and celebrate human ingenuity and forge meaningful human connections. As the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, and with the participation of more than 192 countries, Expo 2020 Dubai looks to take this legacy even further. The Build Bridges track of Expo 2020 Dubai’s Programme for People and Planet features a tapestry of event series and experiences that celebrate our common humanity and the vital connections that can help us prosper together as a worldwide community.

Knowing One Another Better

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Build Bridges 

Build Bridges Icon

The ocean is the origin and the engine of all life on this planet — and it is under threat. How can we stop marine pollution and safeguard the most fundamental of our planet’s life-support systems?

According to the United Nations, marine life is suffering irreparable damage from a combination of chemical pollution and waste dumped in the world’s oceans each year.

Marine debris has formed five giant garbage patches around the world. Plastics are set to outnumber fish in the seas by 2050. Chemical fertilisers, that ultimately make their way to the oceans, are accelerating the development of “dead zones”, areas where the lack of oxygen makes it impossible for marine life to exist.

Our oceans, which cover two thirds of the Earth’s surface, supply 70 percent of the oxygen we breathe, 97 percent of our water and precious nutrients for human health. How can we break the vicious cycle of pollution before these vital supplies become unable to support our well-being and that of the planet?

A growing number of initiatives across the world are now seeking to turn the tide on the destruction of our oceans.

What resources and knowledge can the oceans and their inhabitants provide? How can we derive benefits from the oceans without further damaging their delicate ecosystems? How should access to the oceans be regulated? How can we use technology to strike a balance between progress and preservation? 


Living Oceans: Reversing Our Impact on Marine Ecosystems

World Majlis: Living Oceans

This World Majlis brings together thought leaders, visionaries and changemakers to explore how we can reverse our impact on marine ecosystems. 


Living Oceans

Living Oceans - Documents 

Inside Expo: Sustainability I: The World’s Oldest Innovator

Inside Expo: Sustainability II: Harnessing the Sun

The Powerhouse Pavilions

Terra - The Sustainability Pavilion - Audio Guide

Terra

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Terra - Carousel

At Expo 2020, sustainability is an urgent, attainable reality, and Terra – The Sustainability Pavilion is the proof. Both immersive exhibition space and exemplar of environmental self-sufficiency, Terra is a pioneering piece of architecture that pushes the limits of renewable design.

The pavilion’s 130-metre-wide solar canopy – so vast that you could park 10 city buses head-to-tail atop it – converts sunshine into electricity for the exhibits below. Artfully funnelled natural light and local plant species, together with technologies that can reduce water consumption by 75 per cent, show the way to a sustainable future.


Inspiring experiential journey through our shared sustainable future

Two immersive paths to choose from: beneath a forest and beneath an ocean

LEED Platinum environmental features, including solar power and water recycling

Terra 

terra

Videos

Terra is a super-sized marvel of forward-thinking design. The pavilion’s technology generates enough energy in a year to power a Nissan Leaf to drive halfway to Mars, while another system captures moisture from the air you breathe and turns it into drinkable water. Enter and take a fantastical journey through the wonders of nature, humanity’s challenges and the promise of our shared future. 


terra 

of harmonious living

A model

The Sustainability Pavilion

Terra is home to five thought-provoking art installations from artists around the world, with each piece demonstrating a response to the issue of sustainability.

Terra Art Installations

Young visitors can explore a fantastical world inspired by Terra's very own octopus, Octavia.

Octavia's Playground

Timelapse of Terra 

Prof Ir Dr Zaini Ujang (R3), Secretary General, Ministry of Environment and Water, Government of Malaysia, Tom Hennes, Founder (L2), Thinc Design, USA, Jo Ruxton (L3), Founder, Ocean Generation, UK, Irene Hediger (R2), Head of Artists-in-l

Tom Hennes, Founder, Thinc Design, USA during the World Majlis Living Oceans Reversing our Impact on Marine Ecosystems at the Terra Auditorium m66888

Prof Ir Dr Zaini Ujang, Secretary General, Ministry of Environment and Water, Government of Malaysia during the World Majlis Living Oceans Reversing our Impact on Marine Ecosystems at the Terra Auditorium m66881

Mohammed Slaise, Pearl diver and field researcher, DANAT Institute for Pearls & Gemstones, Kingdom of Bahrain during the World Majlis Living Oceans Reversing our Impact on Marine Ecosystems at the Terra Auditorium m66882

John Defterios, Former CNN Emerging Markets EDitor, Professor of Business, NYU-Abu Dhabi and Moderator speaks during the World Majlis Living Oceans Reversing our Impact on Marine Ecosystems at the Terra Auditorium m66879

Jo Ruxton, Founder, Ocean Generation, UK during the World Majlis Living Oceans Reversing our Impact on Marine Ecosystems at the Terra Auditorium m66889

Irene Hediger, Head of Artists-in-labs, Zurich University of the Arts, Switzerland during the World Majlis Living Oceans Reversing our Impact on Marine Ecosystems at the Terra Auditorium m66887

Water fuels our sustenance but also moves money, goods and people around the world, provides a valuable source of renewable energy, and enables the world’s food to grow. This week will help us understand how to preserve and sustainably manage this precious finite resource for infinite uses. The programme will highlight the true value of water, as well as progress and best practice in ensuring clean and adequate water for people, industry and the planet.

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 How will we protect our most precious resource today, for tomorrow?

Water Week 

World Majlis | Living Oceans

Explore a series of exciting conversations inspired by the theme of Expo 2020 Dubai. The World Majlis is a vibrant forum where diverse points of views are shared on important topics of our time. Each conversation brings together globally recognised thought-leaders who are invited for their exceptional contributions to the theme and their unique perspective on the topic. In each Majlis, students and members of the public are also welcome to contribute and engage.

World Majlis

Conversations on complex issues that bring together thought leaders, visionaries and changemakers.

We grow enough food to feed 10 billion people – 30 percent more than we need. Our challenge is not how to produce more food, but to waste less, and with less impact on the planet.

Agriculture today is the largest consumer of the world’s freshwater resources. It accounts for over 25 percent of global energy use, and uses half of the world’s habitable land. Meanwhile, one person in nine is undernourished while as much as one-third of the total food on the planet is lost or wasted.

Food loss and waste are responsible for an estimated 8 percent of global CO2 emissions, and the economic costs of food loss are estimated at $400 billion per year, even before the additional costs of food waste.

From producer to distributor to consumer, food loss occurs at every step of getting the food from farm to table. The reasons range from bad weather to processing problems, overproduction, inadequate storage infrastructure, and retailer and consumer behaviour. Reducing food waste is a social, environmental, and economic challenge, and is key to the better health of humans and the planet.

Reducing Food Loss and Waste for a Healthier Planet

The Value of Food: Reducing Food Loss and Waste to Save the Planet

Thought leaders, visionaries and changemakers exchange ideas on how to make food supply chains more efficient, reduce waste and, in turn, tackle both obesity and starvation. Co-curated with New Zealand Pavilion

Value of Food Session Agenda

Value of Food Documents 

From farm to plate, the food value chain is an integral part of society, providing income and livelihoods for billions. The ways in which we currently cultivate food by means of deforestation and food waste however, are all contributing adversely to climate change. Expo will serve as a platform to bring together all stakeholders in various value chains to spotlight localized solutions to food, nutrition and farming challenges. The programme will explore food sustainably, climate-friendly agriculture and other practices that work in harmony with the environment. 


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How do we sustainably grow food to meet future demand?

Food, Agriculture & Livelihoods Week

New Zealand Pavilion

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Gallery

The Whanganui River is so important to New Zealand’s Maori people that in 2017, it was granted a special legal identity, giving it the rights of a citizen. Now, the New Zealand Pavilion offers a sweeping cultural tour narrated by the Whanganui River itself.

With a design inspired by the Maori tradition of hand-crafting containers to safeguard items of value, the pavilion leads you on a journey of conservation where the greatest treasure to be protected is our natural world. Immerse yourself in the river’s story, deepen the experience with the pavilion’s web-based app, and journey through a 10-metre-high “vertical river” of water droplets.


New Zealand

The New Zealand Pavilion features a tall box clad in titanic wavy panels of chainmail-like architectural mesh called Kaynemaile. Its flexible façade pulses to evoke a living building and sits on a base crafted from New Zealand Abodo eco-timber. The ground floor’s wooden exterior lends a warm feel to the modernist design, welcoming visitors through a small gap beneath the mammoth Kaynemaile panels.

Climate and Biodiversity Week

Highlights

Climate & Biodiversity Week.