Activities for the Protection of Biodiversity and the Environment (WFWP Spain)

On April 22, 2021, Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP) Spain held a webinar on the theme: “Initiatives to Maintain Biodiversity and to Protect the Environment” to celebrate the UN International Day of Mother Earth. This event aimed to call attention to the crucial role biological biodiversity plays as a way to keep our Mother Earth in healthy conditions. Maintaining biodiversity and protecting the environment is an important part of the solution to people’s health, as the diversity of species makes it difficult for the dissemination of pathogenic agents.

Ms. Angeles Parra, Director of Healthy Life Association and of the National Bio Culture Fair, expressed “Our Mother Earth needs our help everyday. For centuries, agriculture contributed to the biodiversity of species and habitats, but in the last century, modern, intensive agriculture, using a lot of pesticides and the plantation of single crop farming in large areas, has had a negative effect on the biodiversity of the flora and the fauna.” Changes in biodiversity impacts human health more increasingly, as they affect the functioning of ecosystems and can cause important alterations in the natural resources and services that they provide.
Mr. Manuel Martínez Egea, shared about the work of his organization, Alvelal, which rescues impoverished, deserted and abandoned areas of Andalusia, southern Spain, through restorative agriculture. He intends to restore hope in the youth, teaching that it is possible to recover the fertility of the land. His motto is to “leave our children a decent Earth to live in.”
The third speaker, Mrs. Beatriz Ochotorena, a nurse by profession but also a farmer passionate about healthy and fair rural life, founded the Ultzama Foundation. She wishes to educate children and adults about the origin and preparation of food. Much knowledge about food preservation is being lost. In addition, the taste of food that has been grown with pesticides or hormones is completely different from those that have been grown naturally. After a few years living in urban areas, she returned to the countryside, restored a farmhouse and the quality of her life had improved greatly. Mrs. Ochotorena also added that she is educating people “on cheese making, which helps people understand its value and price.”
Mr. José Luis Barceló, Director of Mundo Financiero, emphasized that the process of urbanization is a crucial factor when it comes to the devastation of our environment. More than 60 percent of the world’s population lives in big cities and their surroundings. This artificial environment is causing serious problems of pollution to the air, water and the earth.” In his opinion, humankind hasn’t found a way to progress that is non-dependent on a greater consumption of non-renewable energy.”
Mrs. Marcia de Abreu, President of WFWP Spain and Secretary-General for WFWPI Europe, wrapped up the panel by introducing Giving for Good International (GFGI), a project founded by Dr. Sun Jin Moon, Senior Vice President of WFWPI. GFGI focuses on circular fashion, based on the principles of the circular economy, which is “key if we want to reverse the social and environmental impact in our world”, Dr. Moon shares. According to the circular fashion model, the useful life of any item is very valuable. Its proposal is to design products that can be used more than once, and in this way prolong their lifetime, leading to less consumption of natural resources. Collaterally this also helps to prevent compulsive shopping.