Advancing ecosystem conservation, restoration and sustainable use in West and Central Africa
Biodiversity conservation has become a major development issue in the world, particularly in Africa. Over the past two weeks, world leaders have gathered in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, for the fifteenth Conference of the Parties (COP) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Their objective was to discuss, among other things, challenges and efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 15, namely how to "sustainably manage forests, combat desertification and halt and reverse land degradation and biodiversity loss."
Astrid Aulanier-Rebeschini (France) and Gilbert Kilimo (Kenya) are UN Volunteers working to combat accelerated nature degradation by promoting biodiversity conservation strategies.
Astrid, who is 23 years old, supervises biodiversity management with the UN Development Programme (UNDP) in Benin. Her passion for issues related to biodiversity and global warming brought her to Cotonou. Her role as a UN Volunteer is to make a lasting impact on the lives of people through the implementation of projects to protect biodiversity.