As world leaders are gathered in South Africa for the Parties (COP17) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the 7th Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties (CMP7) COP17 that officially started Monday, the international environment and development group said governments "can't ignore" the immediate and effective role that nature plays in stemming the impacts of climate change.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) also called on governments to "investment and commitments" to conserve biodiversity.

IUNC is the world's largest global environmental network with membership in more than 150 countries.

Among the key issues at the United Nation's Climate Change summit are how to make the best use of nature-based solutions in reducing harmful climate change impacts that will complement the urgent action that governments must take in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"Ecosystem-based adaptation is a cost effective, no-regrets solution that governments ought to incorporate into national policies and take immediate action to implement on the ground," IUCN Director Stewart Maginnis said in a statement released at the conference.

"Improving the management of river systems, coral reefs, mangroves and forests all tangibly improve the resilience of people's livelihoods as they deal with the sudden and long-term consequences of climate change," the environment and development group boss added.

Almost 200 governments are in South Africa to negotiate further action to address climate change during the COP17.

IUCN said there is evidence that appropriate management of nature helps to reduce the vulnerability of people to the threats posed by climate change. Protecting natural ecosystems also helps to slow the rate of climate change by capturing and storing large amounts of carbon.

"Investments and commitments made by governments to conserve biodiversity in intact ecosystems, including through protected areas, is a win-win solution that is cost-effective and applicable where it really matters at a local level by indigenous peoples, local communities, and especially women," IUCN Director for Global Protected Areas Program Trevor Sandwith said.

According to Sandwith, the most advanced of such options is a forest-based protection program to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation, known as REDD+. He said governments "must accelerate" the implementation of an environmentally sound and socially equitable REDD+ mechanism at a national level.

IUCN said the industrialized world needs to remove bottlenecks that are currently holding up the flow of promised resources, and that tropical countries need to seize this moment to "strengthen and -- above all -- avoid weakening" existing legislation and policies that will enable fast start action on REDD+.

In a document titled "Adaptation finance: How can Durban deliver on past promises?" released last week, the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) said without enough funding from rich nations many developing countries especially in Africa will not respond "effectively" to climate change adaptation and mitigation measures.

IIED is an independent international research organization. It works with some of the world's most vulnerable people to ensure they have a say in the policy arenas that most closely affect them- - from village councils to international conventions.

The environment and development group says forests are not the only natural systems that offer governments practical nature-based options in the fight against climate change. It says protection of coastal and marine ecosystems, as well as the world's grasslands and drylands, is crucial for conserving carbon and maintaining the resources upon which millions of people depend daily for water, food and safety.

"People often don't realize just how effective nature can be in tackling the effects of climate change," the IUCN head of Ecosystem Management Program, Edmund Barrow, said.

"The challenge is to find the most appropriate and sustainable ways to manage and use these resources. Intact coastal ecosystems offer a double benefit in the face of climate change -- not only do they protect communities from inevitable sea level rise and storm surges, but healthy coastal systems also capture and store huge amounts of carbon," he added.