G7-Elmau-Progress-Report-2015-Biodiversity-A-vital-foundation-for-sustainable-development

G7 ELMAU PROGRESS REPORT 51Example 4.17 Certified rice production in Sado (Japan)Community development for the purpose of living in harmony with the Japanese crested ibis (NipponiaNippon, referred to as the Toki in Japanese) on Sado Island in Niigata can be considered as an effort that isin accordance with the idea of a society in harmony with nature. “Certified rice for the development of villagescoexisting with the Japanese crested ibis” is sold at a price of about JP¥ 3,000 – 3,500 / 5 kg (ref. JP¥ 1,580 / 5 kg forconventional cultivated rice) in supermarkets and rice stores in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The higher the retailprice, the greater the profits returned to farmers, who contribute toward the improvement of habitats using farmingmethods that nurture wild fauna. This means that these consumers also support the reestablishment of a wild populationof the Japanese crested ibis by purchasing the “Certified rice for the development of villages coexisting withthe Japanese crested ibis.” At the time of purchase, 1 yen per kilogram is also donated to the Japanese crested ibisEnvironmental Improvement Foundation, which supports the improvement of the habitat for this bird.Moreover, Sado City provides a subsidy of up to JP¥ 109,000 per hectare to farmers working on the certified rice,through which the whole community supports the certification system. In this way, the return of the Japanese crestedibis to the wild is supported not only by people actually working on improving the habitat environment, but alsoby consumers who want to support such people; the whole Sado Island community aims to revitalize the area usingthe Japanese crested ibis as a symbol. The connections that have been developed between the farmers, consumersand community residents are precisely in accordance with the idea of a society in harmony with nature.Source: Japan (2014)Example 4.18 UK commitments to source 100 percent credibly certified palm oil (UK)Unsustainable palm oil production is often linked to deforestation and peatland drainage, mainly inIndonesia and Malaysia. In October 2012, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)published the UK statement on sustainable palm oil in collaboration with trade associations from key sectors usingpalm oil. Signatories of the statement are committed to working toward achieving 100 percent sourcing of crediblycertified sustainable palm oil by the end of 2015. The department amended the Government Buying Standard forfood and catering in October 2012 to include a new requirement for the central government to source sustainablepalm oil, palm kernel oil and derivatives by the end of 2015.The G7 acknowledges the importance of mainstreaming,reflected in the indicator “biodiversity concerns are mainstreamedthroughout all aid planning and programmingoperations” (see Box 1.3), and is working to integrate biodiversityconcerns into planning processes at the nationallevel as well as in its international cooperation with partnercountries.Germany, for instance, strategically integrates biodiversityinto different sectors of development cooperation andthereby supports the nexus between services providedby healthy ecosystems and securing food or access to water.In order to do so, environmental and climate assessmentsare applied to all new projects and “biodiversity sectoralcomponents” are introduced.