Second International Youth Symposium
For Biodiversity July 5- 9, 2009/ Ottawa, Canada
Connections
Biodiversity and Education go hand in hand. Teaching kids about nature, in nature, as opposed to just reading about it in a text book is an incredible experience for both students and educators alike. When we design lessons that take into account a childs intrinsic abilty to learn through self discovery, we not only meet curriculum expectations, but we enstow a sense of stewardship in our young people that we see returns, in generations into the future.
The sharing of information and collaborating with students from other nations brings us closer together and helps us all to realize that we do indeed live in a global village.
So why does Biodiversity Matter?
Biodiversity is the variation of life forms on our Earth. It is also the measure of our planet's health. The richness of life is truly amazing. No one is even sure how many life forms there are! Without this variation, our species cannot survive. The reality is that life's diversity itself maintains all life on Earth. That is why biodiversity matters!
"The symposium will greatly help in communicating, educating and raising awareness among young people on the crucial importance of biodiversity and need to protect it. It will come just six months before the start of 2010 - the year by which Parties to the Convention have committed to achieve significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss and the year designated by the UN General Assembly as the International Year on Biodiversity”.
Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary Convention on Biological Diversity
Biodiversity can be understood in three levels: genetic diversity, species diversity, and ecosystem diversity. For ecologists, biodiversity celebrates the complex interactions between species. The entire surface of our Earth is covered with life. Even deep below the surface and high up into our atmosphere life exists.