Prof. Dr. Manfred Niekisch, Director, Frankfurt Zoo and Board Member of the Frankfurt Zoological Society, Germany

Conservation of animal and plant species and ecosystems in all of their diversity is a cultural obligation, because they form the basis of human economic activity. Our lives depend on biological resources. There are boundaries to their use and most of them have already been reached. It is high time to put a stop to the loss of biological diversity.

Ulrike Höfken, Member of the German Federal Parliament for Alliance 90 / The Greens, Germany

In 2010, the international year of biodiversity, the sad fact is that we have not nearly reached the goal of putting a stop to the loss of biological diversity by 2010. To conserve biodiversity internationally, we must begin at home. This is a particular obligation for Germany as the current president of the UN Biodiversity Convention. 

Dr. Rama Naidu, Executive Director, Democracy Development Programme, South Africa

It is critical that parliamentarians and politicians not only understand their responsibilities as servants of the nation but also demonstrate a commitment to upholding the principles of democracy. Working with them at all levels in order to build both their capacity and understanding of these roles is one of the cornerstones of building a strong democracy.

Vanessa Witbooi-Johnstone, Director, Open Door Education Center (ODEC), South Africa

My work with women helps them to overcome obstacles to becoming the powerful women who are mindful of the impact of their culture, context and diversity.

Prof. Dr. Abdelaziz Bennouna, Secretary-General emeritus and Founder of the Department Technology and Economy of Renewable Energies, National Centre for Scientific and Technical Research (CNRST), Morocco

Given the lack of demand, a law on feeding solar power into the national grid in Morocco would make very little economic or social sense. To boost local production, the European market needs to open its doors and import African solar power at a fair price. Issues such as sustainable energy supply can only be decided through open, intercultural dialogue.

Prof. Dr. Gerhard Banse, Researcher at the Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany

Technology and culture have interacted throughout the course of human history. While technical innovations influence culture, cultural practices influence the way we develop and approach technology. By engaging with the cultural, we contribute to the success of international scientific and technical cooperation.

H. E. Pushpanathan Sundram , Deputy Secretary-General of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for ASEAN Economic Community, Indonesia

The recently concluded 16th ASEAN Summit called for swifter implementation of agreements for regional economic integration. For this, and for community-building as a whole, a transformation of culture from ‘national interest to regional action’, to ‘regional interest to national action’ is necessary.

Dr. Sylla Kalilou, Director of the Cabinet, Office of the Commissioner Macro-Economic Policy, ECOWAS Commission, Nigeria

To take into account the diversity factor and ensure democratisation of the regional integration process, the vision 2020 outlined at the ECOWAS Head of State Summit in June 2007 was to achieve an ‘ECOWAS of people’ rather than an ‘ECOWAS of state’.

Nana Kobina Nketsia V, Paramount Chief, Essikado Traditional Area, Western Region of Ghana

Ghana is still essentially a rural country with the majority of people believing in traditional values and systems of which the chieftaincy institution is a focal point. The importance attached to traditional authorities and institutions in these areas is immense.

Prof. Dr. Franz von Benda-Beckmann, Head of Research Group ‘Legal Pluralism’, Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology, Germany

When discussing legal pluralism, we should bear in mind how the law is being applied in everyday life. In many countries, traditional and religious laws persist in practice independent of whether they are recognised within the state legal system or not. People shape these diverse forms of law in their own way. The challenge for development cooperation is to apply a differentiated and culturally sensitive approach that takes into account the cultural diversity within the normative legal position and beyond it.

Mawuli Agboka, Coordinator of Export Marketing and Quality Awareness, Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Ghana

Facilitating smallholders’ access to world markets is not altruism. It is a pragmatic option for ensuring the sustainable socioeconomic development of rural areas – the bastion of cultural diversity.

Dr. Marion Keil, Co-founder of the International Society for Diversity Management (idm) and Managing Director, synetz international, Germany

Diversity management (the management of differences) can generate added value – not only for businesses but for societies, too. To make this possible, politicians, society and industry are all called upon to view diversity as a valuable resource and together to find new measures and creative methods for converting potential for conflict into opportunities for social development.

Dr. Luis Enrique López-Hurtado, Team Leader, Promoting the Quality of Basic Education, GTZ, Guatemala

As a result of social and economic exclusion, national and international Latin American indigenous movements are highly political. It is difficult to separate education and literacy from the struggle for rights and self-determination. The political mobilisation of indigenous organizations leads to educational reforms and intercultural bilingual approaches (e.g., Bolivia, Ecuador). And conversely, bilingual education has contributed to increased political awareness and organisational processes among indigenous people.