National and international experts will come together at the next National Biodiversity Conference in Dublin on June 8-9, 2022, Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan has announced.

The conference under the theme 'Act now for Nature' will mark a key milestone in the development of Ireland's fourth National Biodiversity Action Plan which will be implemented over a period of five years.

The conference is an initiative of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and its National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), and forms part of a public consultation on the action plan.

Announcing the next National Biodiversity Conference, Minister Noonan said:

Stakeholders from the public, private and academic sectors, as well as non-governmental organisations, will attend the conference to share experiences in protecting, conserving and restoring biodiversity, and to offer insights to inform the next National Biodiversity Action Plan.

A climate and biodiversity emergency was declared in the Dáil in 2019 and global biodiversity loss continues at a rate unprecedented in human history, according to the department.

In Ireland, many protected habitats are in poor condition and 14% of assessed species are thought to be endangered, the department said, which threatens the environment and national heritage, but also the economy and society.

Minister Noonan said that biodiversity loss is a critical issue that impacts the natural world, societies and economies as humans depend on nature for survival. He added that nature is the first and best defence against climate change:

The next National Biodiversity Action Plan, the minister said, will seek urgent solutions to reverse losses, enable protection, support conservation and deliver restoration through an all-government and society approach.

There are six objectives in the current draft action plan; thematic areas supporting these objectives will be explored at the conference:

The last conference was held in 2019 under the title 'New Horizons for Nature’ .