The 12th annual Indo-Pacific Environmental Security Forum (IPESF), hosted by the Sri Lanka Navy and sponsored by the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) came to a close last week, promoting regional resilience through multilateral cooperation, the US embassy in Colombo said.
IPESF, which has been held since 2010, brings together environmental security stakeholders from across the Asia-Pacific region on environmental security-related matters, and aims to build regional resilience. The annual event focused on fostering regional cooperation, knowledge sharing, and collaborative action to address environmental challenges that impact national and regional security, and is hosted by one of the countries in the Indo-Pacific region.
Last week’s event, the first-ever IPESF Forum hosted by Sri Lanka, saw participation from 28 countries, and promoted cooperative problem-solving under the theme “Environmental Resilience through Cooperation”.
Addressing the gathering, the United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung shared in her opening remarks, saying: “Our vision of the world is one where all countries, big and small, have opportunities for success and stability. Whether you’re sitting in Fiji or Australia or Mongolia or Sri Lanka, we are all vulnerable. We are seeing this year record-setting weather extremes hitting countries around the world, where everyone is feeling that impact. Recent droughts here in Sri Lanka are impacting food security. It is imperative that we come together to share knowledge and find creative ways to address these common challenges.”
“No matter the advances we make and achieve through technology and innovation, it’s more than evident that nature is always ahead with her unique surprises, and man needs to be more circumspect. Hence, as cognitive beings we need to pursue a path of rational behaviour forging a relationship that would ensure the sustainment of our civilisation and the environment alike.” Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera opined during the event.
According to the US embassy, throughout the four-day event, participants engaged in presentations, panel discussions, and interactive group activities, fostering an environment of knowledge sharing and best practice dissemination covering subjects such as climate change, land security, maritime and water security, and urbanisation's security effects. By embracing a holistic approach to environmental security, the IPESF facilitated the development of actionable plans to address pressing environmental challenges. Project development and workgroup development workshops were instrumental in generating strategies to enhance environmental resilience and security across the region.
The 2024 Indo-Pacific Environmental Security Forum will be held in Vanuatu.