On 20 May, more than 100 young people from Latin America, the Caribbean and Spain participated in the second virtual meeting of the IberoMAB Youth Network.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the IberoMAB Youth Forum could not take place as initially planned in 2020, but a virtual meeting was held in order to follow up on pending activities. During this year’s second virtual meeting, participants agreed on the importance of being able to meet physically in order to strengthen the Network, create partnerships and foster a sense of belonging. Health conditions permitting, it is expected that the Forum will be held this year in the Agua y Paz Biosphere Reserve in Costa Rica. Otherwise, it would take place virtually.
During this meeting, a session was dedicated to presenting the history of the IberoMAB Youth Network. The focal points, who were the first young people to join the Network, presented in detail the Network’s structure and governance to date, mentioning also the current difficulties in following up the projects and the future challenge of transferring historical memory to younger generations and newcomers.
The meeting was also attended by Obed Palagot Echavarria, the 2021 youth spokesperson for UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme in Ibero-America. In the framework of the 50th anniversary of the MAB Programme, young people from biosphere reserves around the world were invited to actively participate in the 50th Anniversary activities by submitting proposals to improve biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. The aim of these actions is to encourage their participation in decision-making at the local level, that is in the biosphere reserves where they live, study or work.
The president of the IberoMAB Bureau, Dr Sergio Guevara, said he was proud and hopeful to see the great work that the young people of the Network have achieved.
Despite the distance, the meeting was marked by the participants’ enthusiasm to keep participating from their biosphere reserves and to support the consolidation of the Network.