“War does not just harm man, it also harms Mother Earth. The wounds, destruction and pollution inflicted on her hurt us, because it is to her we owe everything we are and will be.”

Hola Friend, 

Those powerful words from the opening ceremony of the major global meeting on biodiversity taking place in Cali, Colombia (COP16) are a moving reminder of our interconnection with this planet, and why it is up to all of us to protect it from harm, like radioactive contamination and the risk of nuclear war.

<[link removed]>Check out our nuclear weapons & biodiversity FAQ <[link removed]>Here in Cali, governments are meeting to make decisions on how to stop the rampant loss of nature around the world and remediate the damage already done. Of course, this is too crucial and complex a topic to leave it up to states alone! At the “People’s COP” it has been inspiring to see and meet with activists, scientists, youth representatives, indigenous leaders and many others.

We are working to make sure that decisions are meaningful, feasible and equitable. We’re also paying close attention to make sure there are enough ways to measure that these efforts are actually solving the problem, while making sure to push back against false solutions and greenwashing!



I’m here - along with ICAN partners working on biodiversity - to talk to governments, organisations, media and more to connect the dots with the themes being discussed at this meeting, such as ecosystem restoration and funding mechanisms for biodiversity and nature protection. The latter is particularly interesting when not enough funds have been raised to actually meet the targets set out by 2030, but we know $91.4 billion are spent on nuclear weapons each year!

With this COP’s theme of “Peace with Nature,” we have an opening to make the case why ending nuclear weapons once and for all must also be part of the picture to protect our fragile and beloved planet.  

We could use your help in getting this information to as many people as possible! We’ve put together a new resource, answering some of the questions we get like:

- How do nuclear weapons production and testing impact the environment?
- What do we know about how radiation (from nuclear weapons) affects individual organisms and species populations?
- Can the environmental damage caused by nuclear weapons be remediated?

Will you please read and share the FAQ <[link removed]> using #COP16 ?

Muchísimas gracias,

Lucero Oyarzun
Digital Campaign Coordinator
ICAN

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