---
title: "It’s International Day of Biodiversity today"
---

# It’s International Day of Biodiversity today

 ![IDB2026 Logo C](https://www.acap.aq/images/stories/acap/Logos/IDB2026-Logo-C.jpg)

 Today is the International Day of Biodiversity ([IDB](https://www.un.org/en/observances/biological-diversity-day)).  Proclaimed by the United Nations to raise awareness of the value of life on Earth, the day serves as a global reminder of the need to safeguard biodiversity and protect the ecosystems that support human well-being.  The day is coordinated by the Convention on Biological Diversity ([CBD](https://www.cbd.int/)), the international legal instrument for the conservation and sustainable use of biological resources.

 ![WAD2026 fr horizontal](https://www.acap.aq/images/WAD/WAD2026_fr_horizontal.png) 

 The 2026 edition of the IDB has the [theme](https://www.cbd.int/biodiversity-day/2026) “Acting locally for global impact, Des actions locales à l’impact mondial, Acción local para un impacto mundial”. This fits well with Albatross and Petrel Agreement’s theme for World Albatross Day on 19 June 2026 of “[Habitat Restoration](https://www.acap.aq/world-albatross-day/wad2026-habitat-restoration)”, exemplified by civil society, non-profit organizations and national, regional and local government bodies combining their resources to eradicate alien predators on islands, such as the current projects directed at [New Zealand’s Auckland Island](https://nznaturefund.org/projects/auckland-island/) and [South Africa’s Marion Island](https://mousefreemarion.org/).  A second example related to the WAD2026 theme is of NGOs and non profits working with government authorities to create new breeding colonies of albatrosses and petrels, often protected by predator-proof fences, on [inhabited Hawaiian Islands](https://pacificrimconservation.org/conservation/bird-translocations/) and on Mexico’s [Guadalupe Island](https://www.islas.org.mx/).

 ![Black foot translocation 6](https://www.acap.aq/images/stories/acap/Birds/Albatrosses/B/Black_footed/Black-foot_translocation_6.jpg)*A translocated Black-footed Albatross chick close to fledging gets in some exercise next to a guano-splattered adult decoy on Mexico’s Guadalupe Island, photograph by J.A. Soriano,**Conservación de Islas*

 These, and other activities related to the conservation of albatrosses and petrels, will be featured at the [15th Meeting of ACAP’s Advisory Committee](https://www.acap.aq/documents/advisory-committee/ac15) and meetings of its [Population & Conservation Status](https://www.acap.aq/documents/working-groups/population-and-conservation-status-working-group/pacswg9) and [Seabird Bycatch](https://www.acap.aq/documents/working-groups/seabird-bycatch-working-group/sbwg13) Working Groups in Swakopmund, Namibia over the next two weeks.

 *John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 22 May 2026*