The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (KeTSA) of Malaysia and the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) will hold the final session of the Third ASEAN Conference on Biodiversity on 5 July 2021 with focus on the future of biodiversity conservation in the region. In view of the finalisation of the landmark post-2020 global biodiversity framework (GBF), ASEAN Member States are set to chart transformative actions that will affect the needed change to conserve biodiversity and attain sustainable development in ASEAN.
The virtual event will gather hundreds of participants across the region ahead of the third meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Open-ended Working Group (OEWG) on the post-2020 GBF, in August 2021. Following a series of negotiations among parties, the 30-year strategic plan for biodiversity is expected to be finalised at the 15th meeting of the Conference of Parties to the CBD (COP 15) in Kunming, China, in October 2021.
With the theme “Towards 2050: Living in Harmony with Nature,” the conference was originally scheduled to convene in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from 16 to 19 March 2020, but was postponed and restructured due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic.
From September to December 2020, four sub-conferences on themes, such as the post-2020 GBF, mainstreaming biodiversity, transformative change and innovations, and business and biodiversity were held online.COP 15).
 Dr. Theresa Mundita S. Lim is the current Executive Director of the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) where she leads the Centre in facilitating regional cooperation and coordination on biodiversity conservation for it to be sustainably managed and used, and equitably shared for the well-being of people. Some of her notable international roles in the conservation sector were as the Chair of the Convention on Biological Diversity Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (CBD-SBSTTA) from 2017 to 2018, Chair of the 15th and 18th Meetings of the ASEAN Working Group Meeting on Coastal and Marine Environment (AWGCME) in 2014 and 2017, Chairperson of the 4th ASEAN Experts Group (AEG) on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) Meeting in 2006, and Chairperson of the 16th ASEAN Working Group on Nature Conservation and Biodiversity (AWGNCB), also in 2006. Her core competencies and extensive experience and expertise are in local, regional, and international governance, management, policy development, implementation, and innovation, partnership-building, science and policy linkages, and advocacy in the fields of biodiversity conservation and wildlife protection. |
Welcoming Remarks Executive Director, ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) |
 YB Datuk Seri Dr. Shamsul Anuar Bin Hj Nasarah |
Opening Remarks Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Malaysia |
 Mr. Basile van Havre is a Co-Chair for the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Open-Ended Working Group for a Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. He has over 27 years of experience working in Canada’s Environment Department. In addition to being Canada’s CBD focal point, his roles included Director General of Biodiversity and Partnerships and Director of Population Conservation and Management at the Canadian Wildlife Service, Chair of the CITES Elephant working group and CBD Discussions on Indigenous Knowledge and Repatriation, Co-Chair of the International Joint Commission on Great Lakes Water Quality Board, Director at the Meteorological Service of Canada. |
Keynote 1: Adapting the future Global Biodiversity Framework to a better normal Co-Chair, OEWG on Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework |
 Mr. Hesiquio Benítez Díaz is the director General of the International Cooperation and Implementation, National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (CONABIO) Mexico. Mr. Diaz has more than 25 years of experience in biodiversity-related conventions. He has been serving as the CBD SBSTTA Chair since 2018, and has coordinated Mexico’s National Biodiversity Strategy. In addition, Mr. Diaz has vast contributions as Head of the Mexican Scientific Authority since 2000 and Vice-chair of the Plants Committee (2010-2015) for CITES; as National Focal Point for IPBES; and as Vice-chair of the IUCN Crocodile Specialist Group since 2010. |
Keynote 2: Ways Forward for ASEAN – from SBSTTA to COP 15 CBD-SBSTTA Chair, CONABIO Mexico |
 Previously the Undersecretary of State at the Office of the Council of Ministers of the Royal Government of Cambodia and the co-founder of the Cambodian Institute for Strategic Studies, H.E. Kung Phoak also worked on foreign policy in the Office of the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia. H.E Kung Phoak is currently the Deputy-Secretary General of the ASEAN for the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC), overseeing the implementation of projects under ASCC that focus on forging a common identity and building a caring and sharing society. |
Keynote 3: Post pandemic recovery: the ASEAN response Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community |
 Prof. Emerita Dato’ Seri Dr. Mazlan Othman obtained a Ph.D. in Astrophysics from the University of Otago in New Zealand. An esteemed educator serving as a Professor at the University Kebangsaan Malaysia, Prof. Mazlan was seconded to the Prime Minister’s Department in 1990 to set up and head the Planetarium Division. Later on, Prof. Mazlan became a prominent figure in Malaysia’s astrophysics, having established the National Observatory in Langkawi and the National Space Centre in Selangor. She has also launched Malaysia’s Remote Sensing Satellites TiungSAT and RazakSat. As head of the National Angkawasan Programme, she also saw the launch of the first Malaysian to the International Space Station in 2007. She is currently serving as the Director of the International Science Council Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. |
Keynote 4: Biodiversity beyond Director International Science Council-Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific |
 Ms. Marcia Tambutti is a Biodiversity Expert for the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). She obtained her Master of Science degree in Advanced Methods in Taxonomy and Biodiversity at the Imperial College and Natural History Museum in London. With her focus on public policies on biodiversity conservation, she pursued a career on environmental regulations. Ms. Tambutti has worked with CONABIO on a series of studies of Mexico’s natural capital and the analysis of priority biodiversity sites. In Chile, she worked on strengthening the links between academia and the public sector at the Millenium Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity. |
Keynote 5: Lessons learned from the GRULAC region in mainstreaming biodiversity Biodiversity Expert, Agricultural Development Unit |
 As the first dedicated UK Ambassador to the ASEAN, H.E. Jon Lambe has opened the UK Mission to ASEAN at the time of his appointment in November 2019. H.E. Jon Lambe joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 2010, and was appointed as First Secretary of Energy, Climate Change and Development at the British Embassy in Paris. He then served as Deputy Ambassador and Political Counsellor at the British Embassy in Kinshasa, leading the work on governance and peacekeeping. Most recently, H.E. Jon Lambe has led the work on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament. |
Keynote 6: Synergies between global commitments to protect nature UK Ambassador to ASEAN |
 Mr. Abdul Wahid is the Deputy Secretary General (Natural Resources), Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources Malaysia. He has over twenty-six years of experience working as an Administrative and Diplomatic Officer (PTD) for the Government of Malaysia. He has served a number of Ministries and Agencies including Ministry of Primary Industries and Department of Director General of Lands and Mines. He holds a Master in Land Resource Management from Putra University of Malaysia (UPM), Bachelor in Business Administration from National University of Malaysia (UKM) and Diploma in Public Management from National Institute of Public Administration (INTAN). |
Moderator: Deputy Secretary General (Natural Resources), Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, Malaysia |
 Maya Karin is one of the established actors in Malaysia. With awards and nominations for the Best Actress, she has gained wide recognition from the critics and the public for her perfomances in movies. Aside from her work in the film industry, Maya has also expressed her passion for the environment. She has actively participated in campaigns for environmental and animal protection for various groups such as the Malaysian Society and the World Wildlife Fund. |
Emcee/Host Actor, TV host, Singer, and Environment activist |
Keynote
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