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I would like to recognize some people with us today: Secretary
Juan Elvira Quesada, Secretary of the Environment and Natural
Resources, Dr. Ernesto Enkerlin, President of the Nacional
Comisión of Protected Natural Areas, Jim Rieger, Director
of the Parks in Peril Program from The Nature Conservancy
in Washington, D.C., and Ing. Rosario Alvarez, Director of
the same program in Mexico. Thank you for organizing this
event in order to recognize the support provided by the U.S.
Government for the Parks in Peril Program.
To start, I would like to highlight the vital efforts Secretary
Elvira and SEMARNAT have made to protect Mexico’s natural
resources. As one of the world’s most biodiverse countries,
Mexico is blessed with incredible natural wealth, from the
coral reefs of Cancun, to the woodlands of the Sierra
Madre, to the coasts of Baja California, this rich environment
is a key component of Mexico’s economy. But with this natural
beauty comes an important international responsibility for
its stewardship. I am glad to see the commitment of the Calderon
administration to oversee the management and protection of
Mexico’s environment in combination with long term sustainable
development goals.
Mexicans value healthy natural surroundings and want for
their people what every global citizen wants—clean air to
breath, safe water to drink and fish in, fertile soil to sow,
lush forests and parks for our children to play in, overall
a complete and hearty ecosystem where man and creatures can
thrive.
The Mexican government has demonstrated impressive leadership
in global climate change, whose actions clearly demonstrate
their commitment to respond where ever possible. We greatly
appreciate Mexico’s active participation and support of President
Bush’s “Methane to Markets” global initiative directed toward
reducing greenhouse gas emissions. SEMARNAT and other federal
agencies are helping assure Mexico’s long term economic growth
by promoting rational, sustainable and equitable use of the
country’s natural resources.
Through forestry programs, nature tourism, environmental
service payments and other initiatives, Secretary Elvira has
elevated the importance of and reaffirmed Mexico’s commitment
to protect its resources for future generations while working
to solve today’s problems. The U.S. Government is committed
to helping Secretary Elvira with these initiatives oriented
towards helping Mexico’s economic development, particularly
in some of the most remote areas of the country that are high
in biodiversity.
I first met Dr. Enkerlin on a visit to a Parks in Peril site
– Cuatro Ciengas in Coahuila. I traveled there with
the Governor of Coahuila to see CONANP’s promising work with
local conservation groups, like Pronatura, and community groups
to restore and breathe new life into the region’s amazing
fresh water ponds. During my visit to Cuatro Ciengas, it
was evident that CONANP works with a wide range of partners,
many of which are present today, who facilitate the combination
of resources to tackle difficult but shared problems together.
In working to protect these areas, CONANP plays a vital role
in Mexico. I applaud their work to balance economic development
at the local level with the improved management of parks and
protected areas.
I must also recognize The Nature Conservancy for their international
leadership in helping to shepherd the successful development
and implementation of the far reaching and ambitious program
– Parks in Peril. One of the Conservancy’s key accomplishments
in this program was developing models that could be shared
between protected areas, and more importantly between countries,
and Mexico was one of the program’s shining stars.
The USG has provided over $14 million to support the Parks
in Peril Program through the US Agency for International Development
for work in Mexico. This funding was provided to The Nature
Conservancy to work directly with CONANP and local conservation
and community based partners which helped strengthen community
organizations. This is one of the key aspects of this joint
program because, ultimately it is the local population that
must foster respect of their surrounding lands and take responsibility
for managing biodiversity and using it wisely.
For the USG, this ceremony provides an important opportunity
to recognize the success of this impressive international
program. However, recognizing the end of this program does
not mean our collaboration is finished. The USG will continue
to partner together with Mexico and other countries around
the world to protect and preserve our biodiversity for the
benefit of all of our children. In 2007, the USG committed
over $5 million to new activities in Mexico related to: conservation,
watershed management, forestry, disaster response, forest
fire prevention, pollution reduction and climate change. SEMARNAT,
CONANP, and non-profit organizations, like The Nature Conservancy,
Pronatura and others, will continue to be key partners for
us.
Thank you for the work you are doing to protect and preserve
the environment on both sides of our border.
May God bless our two great nations– Mexico and the United
States. |
