Greenpeace activists have unfurled a large banner from one hand of the famous Christ of Corcovado, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with the legend “The future of the planet is in your hands” to demand that governments take action to protect life on Earth and ensure a safer future for the planet. The message was addressed to representatives of 188 governments who are going to meet in Brazil to discuss the protection of biodiversity on a global scale.

At the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 8), which begins on the 20th, government delegations from around the world will negotiate a series of crucial issues to achieve the “Biodiversity Goals” by 2010 that would halt the dramatic loss of biodiversity on the planet. Environment officials from 188 countries will arrive in Curitiba on March 26 for a reception with Brazilian President Luis Inazio “Lula” da Silva.

The diversity of both terrestrial and marine life is being destroyed at an unprecedented rate. The current rate of extinction of plants and animals is approximately 1,000 times higher than in times before the appearance of humans and predictions suggest that by 2050 this rate will be 10,000 times higher. This loss of biodiversity prevents ecosystems from functioning properly.

As governments argue in Brazil, teams of Greenpeace activists are working in the heart of the Amazon and the forests of Papua New Guinea to stop the destruction of rainforests caused by the cultivation of agricultural products such as soybeans. Greenpeace is calling on all governments to deliver on their promises to establish a global network of protected areas, both inland and ocean, to preserve biodiversity on Earth.