Summary
The twelfth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP12) to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) opened on Monday, 23 October 2017. During the morning plenary session, participants heard keynote speeches, enjoyed a cultural presentation, addressed a number of organizational matters, and heard reports from the CMS subsidiary bodies.
In the afternoon, CMS Executive Secretary Bradnee Chambers presented the report of the Secretariat and implementation of the Programme of Work 2015-2017. The Committee of the Whole (CoW) convened to address budgetary and administrative matters, and the review of decisions. A number of working groups were also established and held their initial meetings in the evening.
In a brief ceremony, Tarsicio Granizo Tamayo, Minister of Environment, Ecuador, signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks.
IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from the CMS COP12. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF.
Photos by IISD/ENB | Franz Dejon
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Opening Plenary
Lively drumbeats entertained participants at the opening of COP12
Fire dancers performing at the opening of COP12
Nadya Yuti Hutagalung, UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador
Yann Arthus-Bertrand, UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador
Cynthia Villar, Senator and Chair, Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Reseources, the Philippines
Zach Beaudoin, Winner, CMS-UN Foundation essay competition
L-R: Bradnee Chambers, CMS Executive Secretary; Øystein Størkersen, Chair of the Standing Committee; and Bert Lenten, CMS Deputy Executive Secretary
Roy Cimatu, Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources, the Philippines
Tarsicio Granizo Tamayo, Minister of Environment, Ecuador
Ibrahim Thiaw, Deputy Executive Director, UN Environment
John Scanlon, Secretary-General, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
Bradnee Chambers, CMS Executive Secretary
Cristiana Paşca Palmer, Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity
Roy Cimatu, Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources, the Philippines, elected as CMS COP12 Chair
L-R: Melanie Virtue, CMS Secretariat; Rod Hay, CoW Chair; Bradnee Chambers, CMS Executive Secretary; Roy Cimatu, COP12 Chair; and Bert Lenten, CMS Deputy Executive Secretary
Øystein Størkersen, CMS Standing Committee Chair, reported on the work of the Standing Committee during the intersessional period
Fernando Spina, Scientific Council Chair, reported on the work of the Scientific Committee during the intersessional period
Committee of the Whole
L-R: Melanie Virtue, CMS Secretariat; Rod Hay, CoW Chair; and Bradnee Chambers, CMS Executive Secretary
L-R: Bradnee Chambers, CMS Executive Secretary, witnessing the signing of the MoU on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks by Tarsicio Granizo Tamayo, Minister of Environment, Ecuador
Sadiki Lotha Laiser, Tanzania
Obaid Ali Al Shamsi, United Arab Emirates
Simon Nemtzov, Israel
Marku Lamp, Estonia, on behalf of the EU and its 28 Member States
Reinhard Schnidrig, Switzerland
Lkhagvasuren Badamjav, Mongolia
CMS COP12 Snapshots
Participants and the ENB team are warmly welcomed to the opening of COP12
L-R: Raed Bani Hani, Jordan; Belal Al Hayk, Syria; Akram Eissa Darwich, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW); and Abdallah Al Hakmi, Saudi Arabia
L-R: Alfred Oteng-Yeboah, Ghana; Elizabeth Mrema, UN Environment; and Pam Chasek, ENB/IISD Reporting Services
Whale shark art installation
COP12 field trip registration