Green Road to Montreal: Planning Environmentally Sustainable Infrastructure for Biodiversity Conservation in Asia — Workshop Series 2022 28 April to 26 October 2022 Environmentally sustainable and “green” infrastructure, including those applying nature-based solutions (NbS), are designed to deliver and/or protect a range of ecosystem services--such as water purification, air quality, space for recreation, and climate mitigation and adaptation--while avoiding or minimizing their impact on wildlife. Such infrastructure serves to support a green economy, reduce costs, create job opportunities, and enhance biodiversity. Sustainable infrastructure planning is a successfully tested tool that provides environmental, economic, and social benefits through natural solutions. In many cases, it can reduce dependence on “grey’ infrastructure that can be damaging to the environment and biodiversity, and can be more expensive to build and maintain. Sustainable Infrastructure upholds the G20 Principles for Quality Infrastructure Investment endorsed at the G20 Osaka Summit in 2019. Workshops Series This series demonstrated the multiple benefits – financial, economic, social, climate-related – of integrating green measures in infrastructure projects in the sectors of transport, energy, urban development and coastal development. The workshops are non-technical in nature, and designed primarily for government representatives, decision-makers, and stakeholders, in particular those attending the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Conference of Parties (COP15), which will reconvene in Kunming, People’s Republic of China, in the third quarter of 2022. The main objective of the COP 15 Conference is to finalize and adopt the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) which will guide urgent policy action at all levels to transform economic, social, and financial models, in order to stabilize biodiversity loss by 2030; and to allow the recovery of natural ecosystems, with net improvements, by 2050. Infrastructure development will play a fundamental role in achieving GBF targets, considering that Asia needs US$1.7 trillion in infrastructure investment to sustain growth and quality of life in the face of urbanization and climate change. Session 1: Greening the Transport Sector 28 April 2022 (Thursday) 12:30-14:30, Philippines (GMT+8) This workshop highlighted the multiple benefits of adopting nature-based measures in wildlife-friendly linear transport projects. Session 2: Greening the Energy Sector 19 May 2022 (Thursday) 12:30-14:30, Philippines (GMT+8) This workshop showcased the multiple benefits of adopting green solutions in energy project development. Session 3: Greening Coastal Developments 23 June 2022 (Thursday) 10:30-12:30 Philippines (GMT+8) Coastal areas in Asia Pacific are among the most vulnerable to climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution caused by ports, coastal infrastructure development, and shipping operations. Infrastructure that makes use of natural solutions -- such as beach dunes, reefs and mangrove management -- can help to contain coastal erosion and flooding, and thereby prevent the loss of land, livelihoods, homes, and wildlife habitats. Innovative instruments, including insurance tools and regional environmental standards, are being proposed to manage risks and mitigate the impacts of climate change. Session 4: Roundtable of Champions 26 October 2022 Discussion focused on principal takeaways from the three earlier workshop sessions, with speakers relating these to the situation in their respective countries, and how environmentally sustainable infrastructure planning could link to each country’s contribution to the GBF. Program and Learning Materials 28 April 2022 19 May 2022 23 June 2022 26 October 2022 Session / Activity Title Speaker(s) Video [VIDEO] Session 1: Greening the Transport Sector Webinar recording of Session 1. Moderator Karma Yangzom, Principal Environment Specialist, Safeguards Review and Environment Thematic Group, Asian Development Bank Opening Session Introduction: Greening the Transport Sector James Leather, Chief, Transport Sector Group Workshop 1: Greening Transport Sector Embedding Nature-based Solutions in Transport Corridors This presentation discussed transport infrastructure can contribute to ecosystem services that are related to water management. Tony Wong Workshop 1: Greening Transport Sector Avoidance of Ecological Damage: Cost/Benefit Analysis of Road Projects This presentation discussed economic approaches and economic tools to look at road development in rural areas. Kim Bonnie Workshop 1: Greening Transport Sector Mitigations to Minimize Transport Infrastructure Impacts on Biodiversity This presentation gave an overview of green infrastructure mitigation options available when avoidance of impacts is not possible. Norris Dodd Workshop 1: Greening Transport Sector Modelling Biodiversity Impacts of Development Infrastructures and Identification of Potential Project Alternatives and Offset Areas This presentation discussed methods for modeling biodiversity that can help to assess potential impacts and identify options for infrastructure… Rebecca Pirzl Open Discussion Session / Activity Title Speaker(s) Video [VIDEO] Session 2: Greening the Energy Sector Webinar recording of Session 2. Opening Session Introduction Priyantha Wijayatunga, Chief, Energy Sector Group, Asian Development Bank (ADB) Workshop 2: Greening the Energy Sector The energy transition and renewables: the 1.5°C challenge This presentation gave an overview of the energy transition and renewables. Ute Collier Workshop 2: Greening the Energy Sector Promoting nature-sensitive renewable energy while protecting migratory species This presentation gave an overview of the impacts of migratory species and their challenges. Ivan Ramirez Workshop 2: Greening the Energy Sector eSensitivity mapping – Avoiding conflict between birds and renewable energy This presentation discussed sensitivity mapping and its potential use in emerging markets. Duncan Lang, Tris Allinson Workshop 2: Greening the Energy Sector River Link – benefits of assessing the whole river basin for hydro dams This presentation discussed the benefits of using functionally-based river basin assessment tools for entering sustainable hydropower. Alison Joubert, Cate Brown Open Discussion Session / Activity Title Speaker(s) Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments [VIDEO] Session 3: Greening Coastal Developments Webinar recording of Session 3. Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Welcome Yueyu Zou, Environment Specialist, ADB Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Opening Remarks Noelle O'brien, Chief of Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management Thematic Group concurrently Director, SDCC, ADB Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Taking the Blue Road: Resilience, Restoration and Regeneration in Coastal Development This presentation discussed resilience, restoration, and regeneration of coastal development an IORA perspective. Mat Vanderklift Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Insurance Tools to Support Nature-Based Solutions This presentation discussed tools to support nature-based solutions. Josh Ling Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Q&A Moderator: Yueyu Zou, Environment Specialist, ADB Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Tools and Techniques to Detect Illegal Wildlife Trade in Ports and Airports This presentation discussed tools and techniques to know the illegal wildlife trade in ports and airports. Cecilia Fischer Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Green Port Standards – A Regional Approach This presentation gave an overview of green port standards in Southeast ASia. Russell Stevens Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Q&A Moderator: Yueyu Zou, Environment Specialist, ADB Workshop 3: Greening Coastal Developments Closing remarks Session / Activity Title Speaker(s) [VIDEO] Session 4: Roundtable of Champions Webinar recording of Session 4. Moderator Vinod Mathur, Former Chairperson, National Biodiversity, Authority of India Opening Remarks Sujata Gupta, Director, Sustainable Infrastructure Division, East Asia Department, ADB Green Infrastructure Development: An Overview Dr. Vinod This presentation is an overview of green infrastructure development from an ADB perspective. Vinod Mathur Key Message from Greening Transport, Energy, and Coastal Development This presentation are takeaways from the Webinar “Green Road to Montreal”: Roundtable of Champions from an ADB perspective. Karma Yangzom Roundtable Discussion Presentation from Ministry of Economy, Republic of Fiji This presentation gave an overview of regional planning in infrastructure development from the Government of Fiji's perspective. Kamal Krishnan Gounder Sustainable Development of National Highways in India This presentation is an overview of the development of national highways in India. Biswajit Mukhopadhay Addressing Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in Road Projects financed by ADB in Nepal This presentation discussed biodiversity and ecosystem services in road projects in Nepal. Sushil Babu Dhakal Presentation from NEDA This presentation discussed sustainable infrastructure planning in the Philippines. Roderick Planta Open Forum Key Messages/Take aways from the Webinar “Green Road to Montreal”: Roundtable of Champions From Panelists This presentation are takeaways from the Webinar “Green Road to Montreal”: Roundtable of Champions from the panelists. Closing remarks Vinod Mathur, Former Chairperson, National Biodiversity, Authority of India Disclaimer The views expressed on this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. By making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term “country” in this document, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area. Event Coordinator/s Karma Yangzom Francesco Ricciardi ADB Organizer/s Climate Change, Resilience, and Environment Cluster Transport Sector Office Energy Sector Office Water and Urban Development Sector Office Read Also Case Study: Kunshan Ring Road - China Technical Report: Nonmarket valuation of water sensitive cities: current knowledge and issues Value Tool: Value the non-market benefits of your water sensitive project BILBI: Assessing the consequences of change for biodiversity at fine spatial resolution globally Partner Organization/s World Wildlife Fund Topics Environment