Today 22 May, the world celebrates the International Day for Biodiversity (IDB), an event commemorating the adoption of the text of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) on 22 May 1992. This day offers a unique opportunity to promote support to the Convention, its protocols and related frameworks for action.
The theme of the International Day for Biodiversity: «Being part of the plan»
This year, under the theme ‘Being Part of the Plan’, International Day for Biodiversity 2024 is a call to action for all stakeholders to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. This means supporting the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework of Kunming-Montrealalso known as the Biodiversity Plan, which offers opportunities for cooperation and partnership between different actors.
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Governments, indigenous peoples, local communities, non-governmental organisations, legislators, businesses and individuals all have an important role to play and are encouraged to show how they support the implementation of the Biodiversity Plan.
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IDB 2024 coincides with two crucial meetings of the subsidiary bodies of the Convention on Biological Diversity, both Nairobi: the recently concluded XXVI meeting of the subsidiary body on scientific, technical and technological advice (SBSTTA) and the IV meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI), scheduled from 21 to 29 May. TO Palermohowever, ends today the National Biodiversity Forum.
Biodiversity, an added value in Calabria
There Calabria it is rich in biodiversity And distinctiveness, has the largest reserve in Italy, approximately thirty percent of the total reserve in Europe. According to Coldiretti, the region at the tip of the Boot would contribute to ensuring that theItaly is the European leader in biodiversity with the national territory hosting approximately 1/3 of the animal species and half of the plant species present in the Old Continent.
Italy boasts over 58,000 faunal species and 6,700 plant species, of which 30% and 15% respectively live practically only in Italy. A heritage – this is the warning from Coldiretti – constantly at risk. A cultural, environmental and economic capital that must be protected compared to the dangers that come from the effects of climate change, land consumption, but also from the homologation and standardization of production at an international level which, in the last century, have caused the disappearance of three out of four fruits.
A network to support biodiversity
In Calabria there are 453 farmhouses, 54 cities and food and wine routes, 40 PDO, PGI and wine productions and 270 traditional products registered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty.
The 22 “Seals” in Calabria are also the enhancement of biodiversity. An action formalized with the products present in the list of “Seals” of Campagna Amica which – underlines Coldiretti – are the largest work of valorisation of peasant biodiversity ever carried out which can be supported directly by citizens in the zero-kilometre farmers’ markets and on the farms, a treasure map that is within everyone’s reach.
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The defense of biodiversity not only has a naturalistic value but – underlines Coldiretti – is also the true added value of agricultural production. Investing in distinctiveness – concludes Coldiretti – it is one necessary condition for agricultural businesses to stand out in terms of production quality and thus face the globalized market by defending and creating local economic systems around the value of food. All this has already contributed to triggering a powerful relaunch process to which must be added the enhancement of internal areas, some still little known, but which are of extraordinary beauty. Calabria has all the cards in order: farmers and breeders will continue to do their part.
Calabria, a proposal to immerse yourself in biodiversity: the Cammino di San Francesco di Paola
edited by Angelina Marcelli – association “The Path of Saint Francis of Paola”
Anyone arriving in Calabria, even for the first time, cannot help but notice how the cultural and religious identity of this land is closely linked to the figure of Saint Francis of Paola. The signs he left, small and large, scattered along the territory, were real reminders for the creation of the Camino, which is nothing more than a sort of “biography on a map”, because it is composed of the reconstruction of historically completed journeys by the Patron Saint of Calabria. The project is very ambitious, as there are six journeys to be traced.
Each journey, with its motivations and protagonists, represents a chapter in the long life of Francesco Martolilla, a humble friar with the vocation of a hermit who ended his days in France, at the court of the most powerful king of the time.
A unique experience to discover nature and spirituality
Inaugurated in 2017, it has already given thousands of walkers an unforgettable experience, a hiking, cultural and spiritual journey forged on historical memory and local traditions. Respecting the quality requirements, the Cammino di San Francesco di Paola obtained recognition from the “Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Activities and Tourism” (2017) and was included in the Atlas of the Cammini d’Italia.
The Ministry of Tourism recently included it in the Catalog of Religious Paths and the Italian Touring Club awarded the “Routes and Walks” quality certification to the Via del Giovane in March 2023. The Path was designed to be traveled on foot, on horseback or even by bike (some sections are very tiring and technical due to the steep slopes and uneven terrain).
How to get on the road
Anyone wishing to travel simply has to purchase the credential and choose whether to organize themselves independently or join one of the many routes organized by the association. In the first case, through the website www.ilcamminodisanfrancesco.it it will be possible to find logistical information to contact the reception facilities. For each end of the stage, accommodation located in the historic centers and catering businesses that stood out for their genuine and simple gastronomic offer were selected. You can also download the GPS tracks or the application.
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Those who want to travel the Via del Giovane and the Via dell’Eremita can also purchase the official guide, published by Terre di mezzo editore. For organized walks, however, the Association provides hiking guides and takes care of all organizational aspects. You must have the credential, which represents the “pilgrim’s passport” and which gives access to the reception facilities along the itinerary. In every place where it is hosted you will receive a stamp, until the journey is completed. The credential will certify the completion of the route (at least 3 stages) and the right to receive the Testimonium of successful pilgrimage once you reach one of the Sanctuaries of St. Francis.
