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With nature currently declining faster than at any other time in human history, the States is urging the entire Guernsey community to help them flesh out their plans to save the natural environment.
Evidence shows a 60% decline in wildlife populations over the last 40 years alone and current extinction rates are between 100 and 1,000 times higher than average for the past several million years.
This is expected to cause an economic loss of 7.5% of global GDP, as the world loses the basic life services that nature provides, such as pollination and coastal protection.
Meanwhile, periodic surveys in Guernsey have shown that local species and habitats are also in decline due to human-made pressures, like changes in land management, invasive species and climate change.
Pictured: Climate change is causing habitats and species to decline.
In an attempt to combat this as soon as possible, the States have redesigned their plans - from the Biodiversity Strategy to the Strategy for Nature - and are encouraging the population to get involved.
Agriculture, Countryside & Land Management Services will hold public displays, drop-ins and a presentation over the coming weeks to help the community learn more about the redeveloped strategy and how they can help.
"In the past five years, the strategy has enabled the establishment of a number of different projects including the Pollinator Project – to support pollinating insects, the BioBlitz – to increase community knowledge about local wildlife, and the DolFin Project – which aims to find out more about our dolphin populations," a spokesperson for the services explained.
Pictured: The Pollinator Project was set up as part of the Biodiversity Strategy - now known at the Strategy for Nature.
The Strategy for Nature has three main aims:
To connect the island community with nature
To care for nature and ensure its diversity and resilience
To foster and share knowledge about nature
"In essence, the more Guernsey supports and protects nature, the more we can ensure a healthy and resilient natural environment and sustainable economy, society and environment for future generations," the spokesperson added. "These goals will need to be adopted by the whole community in order for it to be successful."
The series of free events will begin this weekend, with the public displays which will be available to view at the Guille-Alles Library and Beau Sejour. They will be up from today, 8 August, until 16 August and staff involved with the strategy will be around at certain times to answer any questions.
Following that, a public presentation and Q&A session will be held on the evening of Monday 17 August at Les Cotils.
All of the events are free to attend. Further information on the Strategy for Nature can be found HERE.
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