Biodiversity is the root of all life, both on land and below water. It has an impact on human health, providing the air that we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, natural disease resistance, medicines, as well as climate change mitigation. The emergence of COVID-19 has proved that when we destroy biodiversity, we destroy the system that supports human life. Nature is sending us a message. Aptly, this year’s theme for World Environment Day is biodiversity – a concern that is both urgent and existential. Protecting nature and reversing degradation to ecosystems is at the heart of the EU Green Deal and is the rationale for the new EU biodiversity strategy for 2030.

In 2019, I visited as Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs the Simon Bolivar bridge, a 300 metres long bridge spanning Venezuela and Colombia. The bridge is named after the Venezuelan statesman and it was until the Venezuelan economic crisis a popular crossing point for citizens to shop across the border. Today, the bridge is a point where many Venezuelan refugees start the journey to look for a better future. At the time, I could witness the dire situations that many Venezuelans migrants and refugees are escaping from and the risks and misery they face. 5 million Venezuelan refugees and migrants have by now sought safety and new opportunities across the world, mostly in neighbouring countries. During my visit, I was already appointed as EU High Representative and was committed to organise European and international support for the refuges and migrants. The visit at the crossing over the Táchira River confirmed how badly this is needed.