UNESCO and US Embassy in Thailand partner for photography exhibition championing global biodiversity

The UNESCO Regional Office in Bangkok (UNESCO Bangkok) collaborated with the US Embassy in Thailand in organizing the National Geographic Photo Arkexhibition, which featured action photography of a wide array of the world's animals by celebrated National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore.

The Photo Ark exhibition represented Sartore's artistic project, begun in 2006, to photographically document every animal species of the world. Sartore hopes the 'Ark', which now numbers over 55,000 images and videos, will galvanize public action to protect the earth's animal life and biodiversity for the sustainability of the planet. The exhibition, free to the public, was installed at Living Hall, of Siam Paragon, in downtown Bangkok, and ran from 11 to 29 July 2024.

Soohyun Kim, Regional Director of the UNESCO Bangkok, attended official opening ceremonies on 17 July, where she represented the Organization's ongoing advocacy of biodiversity and education for sustainable development, both themes amply represented by Sartore's informative and consciousness-raising exhibition.

Kim joined additional dignitaries and exhibition partners B. Grimm, Bangkok Creative Studio, Siam Paragon, and Siam Piwat Group for opening remarks provided by His Excellency Robert F. Godec, US Ambassador to Thailand.

'This exhibition showcases the unparalleled beauty of our planet's wildlife and serves as a powerful reminder of our shared responsibility to protect it', said Ambassador Godec. This is never more urgent than right now, when our planet is losing wildlife faster than at any other time since the disappearance of the dinosaurs.'

Speaking on the exhibition's underlying theme of the urgent need to stem biodiversity loss, photographer Sartore noted, 'The Photo Arkreally exists to get people to look beyond ourselves and to bring these animals to the top of mind, and help people realize that even the smallest creatures, which many think are at the bottom of the food chain - like insects - are what keep the planet stable.'

Prior to the day's official opening, hands-on workshops and panel discussions were conducted at the shopping mall as an educational primer to the exhibition itself.

Speaking at the UNESCO-assisted 16 July session, 'Parallel Worlds of Biodiversity and Extinction', Professor Suchana Chavanich, of Chulalongkorn University's Department of Marine Science, shared her research on Arctic-Antarctica. Professor Chavanich, who was the recipient of a L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science award in 2008, explained the impact of climate change on species at the earth' North and South Poles, including observed behavioural changes in polar bears, the presence of algae and jellyfish, and declining survival rates of newborn penguins and seals.

Professor Chavanich - she is currently Project Leader of Coral Reef Conservation in the Western Pacific for the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission's Sub-Commission for the Western Pacific - also expressed concerns over coral bleaching and other environmentally critical issues, namely microplastics pollution. She noted that, due to 'multiple accelerators, 'what is happening right now should have happened in the next 100 years', and therefore 'Now is the time to take action before it's too late.'

Speaking at a separate educational session, 'Protected Area Management: Why Does It Matter?', of 17 July, Disaorn Aitthiariyasunthon, Forestry Technical Officer, Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) - she received a UNESCO 'Man and the Biosphere Young Scientist Award' in 2016 - took the audience on a deep dive into her research on gender roles in the management of Thailand's Ranong Biosphere Reserve and its all-important mangroves.

Aitthiariyasunthon also shared capacity-building activities supported by DMCR for local women, including how to sustainably use mangrove resources to produce tea, soap and other products. Such activities help local women increase their household's income, while encouraging them to directly participate in mangrove management. As Aitthiariyasunthon observed, 'The keywords are participation and the sharing of benefits. Protected area management cannot be achieved by only enforcing laws; we should share the benefits with the communities and raise their awareness of conservation.'

See also:

For more information on photographer Joel Sartore's Photo Ark project

Event page on the US Embassy's website

UNESCO's work on biodiversity

#Biodiversity #MarineBiodiversity #Mangrove

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