News | 18 Out, 2021

CEC presented priorities for new cycle at IUCN World Conservation Congress

The IUCN Commission on Education and Communication (CEC) was at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille, France from September 3-11, 2021. Dozens of CEC Members and Steering Committee members met at the World Conservation Congress and presented priorities for the new cycle. They highlighted the achievements of the Commission from the past five years, connected with each other, and worked together on what the next four years will look like.

 

Taking place in a hybrid format for the first time in history, the IUCN Congress brought together 5,000 delegates from around the world to Marseille and 3,000 virtual participants gathered online to set priorities for the international conservation agenda and take action to conserve nature.

IUCN elected new leadership at the IUCN Congress, including the first-ever Arab woman as IUCN President, Razan Al-Mubarak. IUCN Members re-elected Sean Southey to continue leading the CEC for the 2021-2025 period.

The CEC uses innovative education and communication tools to connect people to nature and inspire action to protect it. At Congress, CEC presented its 2017-2021 report to Congress, and the IUCN Congress approved the CEC mandate that will guide its actions for the 2021-2025 period.

 

CEC highlighted partnerships and commitments

During Congress, CEC highlighted the partnerships and commitments that help advance its goals and objectives, particularly in the four areas of work that make up the new mandate.

The CEC and WCPA-led #NatureForAll  – a global movement to inspire love of nature – was launched at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Hawaii in 2016. Since then, it has grown into a global community of over 500 partner organizations. In Marseille, CEC members presented the newly developed #NatureForAll Pathways and Priorities that will guide the movement in the next four years.

In line with the #NatureForAll mandate, CEC played a leadership role in implementing the youth engagement strategy of the IUCN Congress. At the hybrid high-level Global Youth Summit (GYS) on 3 September, the IUCN Director General Bruno Oberle committed to delivering a Youth Engagement strategy for the Union by 1 January 2022.

The GYS was preceded by a fully virtual, free of cost, 2-week virtual event in April 2021 where over 15,000 youth from around the world gathered and worked together to define their views on the way forward for youth in IUCN. Their priorities are summarised in the Global Youth Summit Outcome Statement, which was presented to the IUCN Members’ Assembly on 8 September.

Through events in the Exhibition and Forum sessions, including campus sessions and speaker pitches, the Commission highlighted the work done to advance Education for Sustainability, and to launch the Reimagine Conservation initiative in partnership with the Commission on Environmental, Economic and Social policy (CEESP).

 

An inspirational gathering

The #NatureForAll Youth Oasis in the exhibition was an inspirational gathering place throughout Congress, hosting dozens of youth-focused and youth-led sessions to inspire love of nature over the six days of the Forum and Assembly. The space was exclusively devoted to showcasing young people’s leadership in conservation and nature action. 

During the 90 minute Forum session Creating a world inspired by #NatureForAll, CEC Chair Sean Southey presented the CEC Awards 2021 to Margaret Otieno, Carlos Estrada, and Parks Canada. Mr. Southey also announced Dr. Otieno as the next Deputy Chair of the CEC.

The membership process for 2021-2025 will open last week of October. Make sure to visit: https://portals.iucn.org/commissions/.