5th INTERNATIONAL FORUM OF INFORMATION
FOR THE SAFEGUARDING OF NATURE
“CAPITALIZING THE ENVIRONMENT”
VILLA MONDRAGONE - MONTE PORZIO (
Under the patronage of the President of the Italian Republic
Investing in a worthwhile environment: opening of the International Forum of Greenaccord with greetings from President of the Senate, Franco Marini, from Vice President of the Minister’s Council Francesco Rutelli, and from the Minister of the Environment Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio
This morning, with greetings from the president of Greenaccord Gian Paolo Marchetti and with the messages from the President of the Senate, Franco Marini, from Vice President of the Minister’s Council Francesco Rutelli, and from the Minister of the Environment Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, the 5th International Forum of Information for the Safeguarding of Nature began, organized by Greenaccord with the patronage of the President of the
“I would like to applaud sincerely those who for this initiative have demonstrated their dedication,” wrote President Marini. “On the other hand the theme of this forum poses an important epigraph to this edition, “Capitalizing The Environment,” as it evokes a delicate relationship between the need to preserve the environment and the economic mechanisms which regulate the models of sustainable development.”
The Vice President Rutelli, through his message of greeting, also centered the attention on the necessity of finding an equilibrium between economy and environment for compatible development. “The economic aspects of environmental politics – he explained – are a not-to-be-forgotten element of a policy that guarantees a more shared and responsible governance than in the past. Not only because for many high-tech firms an investment in renewable resources or in energy-saving systems represents an ever more relevant economic reality, but also because the impact of phenomena like pollution and, at the global level, global warming, are already having costly effects for many communities. The virtuous model of development compatible with the protection of the environment is anything but a utopia. We need to abandon the rigidity of trying to stop modernization: technology is the first ally if those who do not want to sacrifice the future of our planet and the future of our children.”
“The economy has to find its true function again, that of promotion and diffusion of general welfare – added Minister Pecoraro Scanio – and therefore has to put itself at the service of human needs, both individual and social.
An economy that restores the primacy of people cannot but restore the primacy of the environment as principal source of the economic process to protect and to preserve in its reproducibility.
Ecosystems, as Professor Robert Costanza (one of the speakers here) teaches us, offer freely to humanity a series of services that are both essential and uncountable in the economic process but which have enormous value. It is maintaining these mechanisms that produce these services, which means guaranteeing to humanity a future of general welfare,” concluded the Minister, “and investing in their protection means investing in the production of wealth, rather than limiting ourselves to exploiting natural capital in a destructive manner.”
The discussion was then officially opened by Professor Andrea Masullo, President of the Scientific Committee of Greenaccord with the talk “The Person: Instrument or Protagonist of the Global Market?”, followed by the presentation of Professor Robert Costanza, environmental economist and professor at Gund University, Vermont, on “Investing in Natural and Social Capital for a Sustainable and Auspicious Future.”
“Having more is better only up to a certain point – said Prof. Costanza – and the growth of the GDP does not correspond anymore to a higher quality of life (sensations of security, satisfaction, realization, and happiness). The reported economic statistics, in fact, demonstrate that calculating the GDP is an error in that it cannot encompass the voices of those who would tie it to the satisfaction of people, in that it calculates only constructed capital and lacks the social and human capital.”
During the afternoon session, “Sustainable Economic Mechanisms,” there were on the other hand presentations from Paolo Pietrogrande, President of Atmos Holding, whose talk was entitled “New Investment Scenarios in Renewable Energy Source,” Stefano Masini, Coordinator for Environment and Territory of Coldiretti, who discussed “GMOs and Organic Agriculture: Food Future of a Crossroads,” as well as Vincenzo Ferrara, climatologist for ENEA whose talk was on “Economic Evaluation of Climate Change Impacts.”
Doctor Ferrara then presented a global overview of the situation as far as global climate change and focused attention on the consequences linked to inaction. In particular he underlined the possible economic fallout of not reducing emissions and of an insufficient intervention to slow global warming.
“The economic convenience of these global reductions – he stressed – must not be evaluated only in respect to industrial costs but rather including the costs avoided by the damage provoked by climate change. Evaluations of economic convenience must include not only current economic benefits, but also opportunities for development and the benefits we leave to future generations.
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The Fifth International Forum of Information for the Safeguarding of Nature is an event realized in partnership with:
Fondazione Monte Paschi Siena, Ministry of the Environment and Protection of the Territory and Seas,
Patronage from:
Minstry of Economic Development, President of the Italian Republic, City of Monte Porzio Catone, ODG Nazionale, FNSI, WWF, Segretariato Sociale Rai
Sponsors:
Merck Sharp and Dome, Italian State Railways, Bcc Rocca Priora, Acqua Minerale Lauretana, Coop, Coldiretti
Technical Sponsors:
Comunità Montana dei Castelli Romani e Prenestini, Novamont, ESRI Italia, ECOR, Libera Terra, Morpier
Media Partners:
Rai 3, Rainews 24, Repubblica.it, Ansa Ambiente, IPS, Tempo Economico, RDS, Valori
Greenaccord Press Office
Nicola Checcarelli
+39.339.723.4724
Martina Valentini
+39.338.918.0001
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