HEADQUARTERS EXHIBITION ‘TIMELY REMINDER NOT ONLY OF THE WONDERS OF NATURE,

BUT OF OUR DEPENDENCE ON IT’, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL

 

Following are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks at the opening ceremony for the exhibition, “Gateways to Conservation:  Connecting People to Nature” in New York, 22 October:

I am delighted to take part in the opening of this exciting exhibition.  Let me commend the Wildlife Conservation Society and its president, Steven Sanderson, for “connecting people to nature”.

Let me also thank the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and our colleague Director-General Koichiro Matsuura for this exhibition.

Humankind’s heavy footprint has already caused the disappearance of many, many species.  Many more are endangered.  This exhibition is a timely reminder not only of the wonders of nature, but of our dependence on it.

Protecting the environment is crucial for our prosperity and well-being.  Most of the world’s rural poor depend on biodiversity for food, fuel and shelter.  If we fail to safeguard resources and habitat, we will only deepen poverty.  And poverty itself is a major threat to the environment.  If we are to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015 and address global climate change, we must get out of this trap.

One cannot help but be moved by the beautiful photographs in this exhibition.  But these are not just pretty pictures.  They are truly uplifting images, showing people in need and people working hard to help them.  I hope all who see this exhibition will be inspired to do their part to promote a global ethic of conservation.  There is no time to lose in putting our societies on a more sustainable path of development.

I thank everyone involved in making this exhibition possible, and commend it to a wide global audience.  The more people who see it, the better.

* *** *

For information media • not an official record