Airbus launches Biodiversity Campaign

On Friday, 5th June, to mark World Environment Day, Airbus, the National Geographic Society and the UNEP Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) launched a world-reaching biodiversity communication campaign, “See the Bigger Picture”.

With combined commitment, the three partners aim to stimulate and raise awareness on biodiversity among young people, families and educators worldwide. The campaign comes in the run-up to the International Year of Biodiversity in 2010.

“See the Bigger Picture” calls on children and young people to illustrate the diversity of nature around them and to consider their role in conserving it via a worldwide photo contest. The contest encourages the world’s youth to step outside, explore the variety of life and take a picture of what biodiversity means to them. Uploading it to seethebiggerpicture.org will give them the opportunity to share their biodiversity experience with people from all over the world. The five best pictures will be rewarded with a trip to Washington, D.C., visiting, amongst other places, National Geographic’s headquarters.

The loss of biodiversity and climate change are some of today’s main environmental challenges and Airbus is fully committed to tackle aviation’s 2% contribution to man-made CO2 emissions. However, there are major sources of emissions and environmental threats that lie beyond the aviation industry. Deforestation accounts for 17% of global greenhouse emissions and is thus one of the main causes for climate change and reason for the continuing loss of biodiversity.

Tom Enders, CEO and President of Airbus said, “In the future, aviation's licence to grow will also depend on the industry's contribution to raise awareness of the facts, realities and challenges in the field of environmental changes. We must be seen as what we are: a contributor to the solution, not to the problem. This is why we join forces with the UNEP/CBD and National Geographic to support the United Nation's mission on biodiversity with the ‘See the Bigger Picture’ campaign.”

The campaign will be featured in the various language editions of National Geographic magazine, National Geographic Kids magazine and the National Geographic Channel. Benefiting from the far-reaching distribution channels of the National Geographic Society, one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world, “See the Bigger Picture” has a potential reach of over 260 million people in more than 190 countries.

"National Geographic is delighted to partner with Airbus to encourage children to get outside and observe the variety of plants and animals around them. Submitting photographs illustrating what biodiversity means to them is a great way to get kids excited about the natural world and for them to appreciate the importance of biodiversity," said Declan Moore, Senior Vice President, National Geographic.

Ambassador of the campaign is National Geographic’s wildlife photographer Joel Sartore, renowned for his expertise in searching for and photographing the most endangered species on this planet.

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