Buenos Aires, Argentina - IUCN

In addition we need a much better understanding
of what IUCN's policies are. We have spent hours,
indeed days, debating Resolutions and Recommendations.
It is essential that we tease out of these texts a
coherent body of policy to guide IUCN and its members.
IUCN is a Union of members, who, if they are to
be effective members of this Union, must be bound by
these policy directions just as is the Secretariat.
My second point deals with the IUCN mission and
membership. The Mission Statement* that we worked
on for months before the General Assembly, and
which we have now made clearer and simpler, has
three major components—to influence, to encourage
and to assist societies. That does not mean we are
going to tell others what is best for them. It means that
through our membership, working in partnership
with people around the world, we will attempt to
achieve the values and visions represented by that
Mission.
The Mission Statement goes on to refer to conserving
the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensuring
that any use of natural resources is done in
equitable and ecologically sustainable. We have all felt
a tension at this General Assembly between conservation,
protectionism and sustainable development.
There is no statement that I can make to you more
strongly than to note simply that absolute protectionism
is not supported by the vast majority of opinion in
the world today. We cannot draw lines around unique
natural resources and lock them up. This, of course,
does not mean that certain fragile ecosystems or certain
endangered species do not deserve our special
attention and protection. But it is a fool's paradise to
think that the world, to think that conservationists of
the world, can ignore the needs of people, particularly
rural communities, or, that we can be insensitive to the
diversity of the world's many cultures.
Environmentally sustainable development is the
greatest hope that life on earth can endure. We must
always remember that it integrates three key features.
The first is the economy—creating real meaningful
economic opportunities for people at local and rural
levels. The second is the ecology—protecting the
environment, conserving natural resources and maintaining
global biodiversity. And third, it means something
that far too often people leave out—equity. We
must focus on the necessity of maintaining the integrity
of cultures around the world. We must think
* "To influence, encourage and assist societies
throughout the world to conserve the integrity
and diversity of nature and to ensure that any
use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically
sustainable."
about equity in terms of inter-generational responsibilities
as well as contemporary needs. We have no
right to deny future generations their fair share and
opportunity to a healthy and wholesome world. And
today in terms of contemporary equity, those who
derive the benefits of economic development must
equitably share the burdens of that development.
This brings me to my concluding points on membership.
In the light of IUCN's clearly stated Mission,
we must now develop equally clear criteria for membership
into this Union. In a very fundamental sense
members must subscribe to this Mission in their own
work. If they do not subscribe to the Mission of IUCN,
or to our policies, then IUCN is not the place for them.
We should not confuse ourselves that we can be everything
to everyone. We have adopted a Mission that
charts a clear direction for the Union and for those who
desire to be counted among its members.
Let me close by noting that the "nature" of conservation
has changed. The question is how do we
provide the leadership to meet the challenges of sustaining
life on earth. We must integrate the concepts
of conservation and environmental protection into
sustainable development. And equally important, we
must reach out to new stakeholders and include them
in our Union. Women, the poor, indigenous people,
NGOs from the south, religious organizations, labour,
business, trade experts. All of those have a stake in
what IUCN's Mission is all about. I fully endorse the
notion that IUCN should provide leadership and
assist in efforts to launch a global campaign to help the
world's communities understand the essential nature
of environmentally sustainable development and the
role that each individual must play if that goal is to be
achieved.
Filially, I am extremely excited about the challenge
and the opportunity to serve the members of IUCN.
IUCN has come to a point of great significance and
accomplishment. During the past six years our current
excellence has been greatly enhanced under the
leadership of our outgoing Director General, Dr
Martin Holdgate. His work, and the work of all of us
who have worked hard on behalf of IUCN, can best be
rewarded if we build on these past successes to meet
the opportunities of the 21st Century. We must create
a global partnership for a sustainable, equitable and
peaceful world. That is the challenge before IUCN.
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