For Immediate Release
Press Release
The ASEAN Senior Officials on Environment have endorsed the U.S.-ASEAN Alliance for Protected Area Conservation—a new project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and co-created with the U.S. Department of the Interior’s International Technical Assistance Program (DOI-ITAP) and the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB)—to strengthen the management of protected areas and reduce land-based greenhouse gas emissions across the ASEAN region.
The project will support the implementation of the ASEAN-U.S. Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the ASEAN-U.S. Environment and Climate Work Plan.
“The inextricable link between biodiversity and climate has been broadly recognised in the ASEAN region. As a biodiversity hotspot, ASEAN prioritizes its commitment to meeting the mutually reinforcing goals of climate change mitigation and adaptation and biodiversity conservation. We are excited to work together with the U.S. government under this new partnership," said Dr. Theresa Mundita S. Lim, ACB’s Executive Director.
Announced by President Biden at the U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit in May 2022, the project seeks to foster regional cooperation and mitigate climate change by improving the management of ASEAN Heritage Parks—a current network of 57 national parks and nature reserves across the ASEAN region that holds immense biodiversity value as the home to unique ecosystems and species crucial to global conservation efforts. Anticipated outcomes of the project include a strengthened regional network of ASEAN Heritage Park managers, empowered with the latest tools and techniques to implement actions that enhance biodiversity conservation and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
“The U.S. government is proud to partner with the ACB in delivering the commitments made in advancing the ASEAN-U.S. Comprehensive Strategic Partnership—including our pledge to conserve ASEAN’s rich biodiversity and natural resources and strengthen transboundary cooperation to achieve ambitious regional climate and environment goals,” said Aaron Brownell, Director of the Environment Office of USAID’s Regional Development Mission for Asia.
Deforestation and land degradation in Southeast Asia leads to biodiversity loss, destroys water resources, and represents nearly a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions. Improving the management of forest and other ecologically valuable landscapes beyond protected areas increases carbon storage while enhancing land productivity, improving economic livelihoods, protecting water resources, and making people and nature more resilient to climate change.