Under the theme "Biodiversity - Stewardship for Vital Resources", the fourth Dresden Nexus Conference (DNC2022) from 23 to 25 May was dedicated to one of the most pressing questions worldwide – how can biodiversity be preserved and protected? The approximately 350 participants from more than 60 countries also discussed the question of what role biodiversity plays or should play in the concept of the Resource Nexus, i.e. integrated perspectives on the use of vital resources. The international online conference was co-organised by the United Nations University (UNU-FLORES), the Technische Universität Dresden (TU Dresden), and the Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development (IOER).
Dr David Malone, Rector, United Nations University
"I am delighted that the Dresden Nexus Conference encourages global dialogue on the value that the Nexus Approach brings to solving the challenges faced by our planet. Biodiversity loss will have catastrophic implications for generations to come, unless we can take urgent action through sustainable, interconnected environmental resource management. The Dresden Nexus Conference provides an ideal platform for the much-needed intersection of policy and science to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals."
Prof. Edeltraud Guenther, Director, UNU-FLORES
"Embedded in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the DNC paves the way for an accurate and empirically grounded understanding of the Resource Nexus among scientists and the broader professional community, as well as for the integration of Resource Nexus concepts into policy design and implementation. Perhaps most importantly, this event will foster a community of practice for the sustainable management of environmental resources – across academia, policy, practice, and civil society. The Resource Nexus goes beyond water, soil, and waste; it encompasses all relevant environmental resources, including energy and other geo-resources as well as biodiversity."
Prof. Wolfgang Wende, Head of Research Area Landscape, Ecosystems and Biodiversity, IOER
"DNC2022 has highlighted many ways in which biodiversity can be conserved and restored. Looking ahead to the World Biodiversity Summit in Kunming, China, at the beginning of October, it would be very important to agree on ambitious and concrete goals there. Above all, it must be possible to operationalize them. This is the only way to measure how well implemented measures help to achieve the goals. At the DNC2022, we saw many good examples from practice. They show: Serious biodiversity conservation is possible."
Dr André Lindner, Managing Director School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, TU Dresden
"We have to ask ourselves the question – is it really the last chance to see a lot of species alive and in their natural habitat? – or the last chance to see the possibility to counteract ongoing biodiversity loss, and hence securing the very fundamentals of our development and well-being. With the DNC conference series sustainability as well as transfer and internationalisation as essential key values of the organizing institutions are put into action to contribute towards sustaining the environmental life support system of our society."
About the Dresden Nexus Conference
The Dresden Nexus Conference (DNC) is an international conference series. It focuses on the discussion of current research and real-world cases that contribute to the further development of a nexus perspective in dealing with natural resources. Since its inception in 2015, DNC has been a meeting point for academics, UN agencies, decision- and policymakers from UN Member States, businesses, and civil society from the local to the global levels. DNC aims to bridge the gap between research and practical implementation through the lively exchange of all participants. For the very successful realisation of the 2020 conference as a virtual event (eDNC2020), the organising institutions UNU-FLORES, IOER, and TU Dresden received the eku erfolg – Zukunftspreis (eku success – Future Award) of the Saxon Ministry of the Environment (SMEKUL) in 2021.
DNC2022 is co-funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG/WE 3057/8-1).
More information on DNC2022