The UN global summit on biodiversity, which is attempting to secure “a Paris Agreement for nature”, has been moved from China to Canada.
Known as Cop15, it is due to take place in Montreal next December rather than in Kunming, China, this autumn. It follows delays due to Covid-19 and controversy over countries’ continuing failure to commit to meaningful targets on addressing biodiversity loss and accelerating species decline across the world.
Delegates to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) including Ireland will aim to adopt a global framework for biodiversity to halt and reverse losses of the world’s plants, animals and ecosystems at their 15th gathering. This is separate from the Cop15 held under the UN Convention on Combating Desertification last month.
Despite the pandemic, the first round of discussions was held virtually in Kunming in October 2021, but the convention’s secretariat announced in March the summit had been delayed for a fourth time as China battled another Covid-19 wave.
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“Due to the continued uncertainties related to the ongoing global pandemic, China, as Cop president, with the support of the bureau, has decided to relocate the meetings from Kunming to a venue outside of China,” CBD executive secretary Elizabeth Maruma Mrema confirmed.
It aims to create long-term nature protection goals for mid-century and shorter-term targets for 2030, pushing for the convention’s 195 signatories to enshrine these targets in national policies. A key draft target is to conserve 30 per cent of land and sea areas globally by 2030.
The new location “should now focus everyone’s minds on the quality of the deal”, said Li Shuo, a policy adviser for Greenpeace China.
Despite the venue change, China will retain the presidency of the conference.
“Now it is critical that the whole world comes together behind Canada and China to deliver an ambitious and adequately funded agreement in Montreal,” said Brian O’Donnell, director of Campaign for Nature.
The decision was confirmed at a meeting of the CBD bureau in Nairobi on Tuesday, which is also seeking over coming days to advance negotiations on an ambitious global biodiversity framework to set the world on a path to bending the curve on nature loss in advance of Cop15. It will also underline the contribution of nature to climate change mitigation and adaptation, and to achieving sustainable development goals.
“With up to one million species currently at risk of extinction worldwide, the world cannot afford to wait any longer for global action on nature protection. Canada will continue to advocate for international collaboration on an ambitious Post-2020 global biodiversity framework,” said Canadian minister of environment and climate change Steven Guilbeault.
