【Event】The Biodiversity Protection and Sustainable Development Seminar Held In Guangzhou

The Biodiversity Protection and Sustainable Development Seminar, jointly organized by China WTO Tribune and Foreign Trade Association (FTA) – Business Environmental Performance Initiative (BEPI), was held in Guangzhou on November 17, 2015.
As an important social group, enterprises exert impacts on biodiversity and its dependence on biodiversity cannot be underestimated. No matter for the response to the external stakeholders, or for their own development, participation in biodiversity protection , sustainable use and equitable sharing of biodiversity benefits will become the urgent subject for more and more enterprises.

Enterprises’ participation in biodiversity can reduce business risks, explore the future business opportunities for the enterprises and improve enterprises’ reputation. Mr. Zhusun GUAN gave a Keynote Speech on Practices of Enterprises' Participation in Biodiversity and analyzed the reason why enterprises need to participate in the biodiversity.
He said, for how to participate in the biodiversity, he further pointed out that enterprises need to identify their own action field, gradually establish biodiversity management system to integrate the concept of biodiversity into the whole production cycle .meanwhile, it is necessary to strengthen biodiversity information disclosure and carry out constant CSR communication with all stakeholders.

Mr. Zhidi YU, Division Director for Division 4 of Foreign Economic Cooperation Office, Ministry of Environmental Protection, said that Enterprises’ participation in biodiversity not only needs the actions but also needs to extend the concept of biodiversity to the entire supply chain. The development of enterprises cannot be separated from biodiversity. Every company has direct or indirect contact with natural resources, and enterprises need to use your head to find the links between natural resources and itself.  
Mr. Nidal Zribi, Head of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) and Sustainability at HEMA Far East, expressed the same idea. He held that, from the perspective of the human beings, all problems are the responsibilities that we need to burden, and the only solution to solve these problems is cooperation; from the perspective of enterprises, biodiversity concerns each link in the supply chain so the biodiversity protection needs the participation of the entire supply chain to produce the best results.

Mr. Mouz.Liu, Deputy manager of Supply Security of Topfond Health (China) Pharmaceutical Co., LTD under Lee Kum Kee Group presented the practice on biodiversity protection. Based on the operation practice in traditional Chinese medicine industry, he emphasized the promotion role of unique innovation management mode for biodiversity protection.

As the progress of economic globalization, biodiversity protection has become an important content of international society’s evaluation on corporate social responsibility practices. Ms. Bo LIN, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, China WTO Tribune,  said in the panel discussion that, only more and more enterprises, organizations and individuals have shared vision to carry out the common action, and realize the cross-border cooperation, the biodiversity sustainable development can become a reality.

Joyce Chau, Representative China, Foreign Trade Association also stressed that, biodiversity protection is becoming an important part of China's social responsibility practices and it needs multi-parties cooperation and support. The European Union practices and experience on biodiversity can provide reference for China.