The conference is being billed as a major biodiversity COP, because it is expected to lead to the adoption of a new policy. Global Biodiversity Frameworkguide actions worldwide by 2030, to conserve and protect our natural resources.
Delegates and organizers will hope that this framework will have a more lasting impact than its predecessor: at COP10, in 2010, governments agreed to strive to achieve ambitious targets by by 2020, including halving the loss of natural habitats and implementing plans for sustainable consumption and production.
However, one UN report was released that year, showing that none of the goals were fully met. Meanwhile, The planet is experiencing the biggest loss of life since the era of dinosaurs ended: one million species of flora and fauna are currently threatened with extinction.
Secretary-General António Guterres speaks at the United Nations Conference on Biodiversity (COP15) in Montreal, Canada.
‘A symphony of chaos’
UN stresses urgent need for action Secretary General António Guterres in me opening speech to the conference on Tuesday.
Noting that “without nature, we are nothing”, Mr. Guterres declared that mankind for hundreds of years has “conducted a symphony of chaos, played with instruments of destruction“.
The head of the United Nations has listed examples of this devastation, ranging from deforestation and desertification; to environmental poisoning by chemicals and pesticides, which are degrading the land, making it more difficult to feed a growing global population.
He also points to Ocean degradation, which is accelerating the destruction of life-sustaining coral reefs and other marine ecosystems – directly affecting ocean-dependent communities.
Corporations ’empty our world of natural gifts’
Guterres targets multinational corporations, which, he says, are “filling their bank accounts while taking away the natural gifts of our world,” and turning ecosystems into “stuff.” play for profit”, while condemning the concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a small number of super-rich individuals.
The head of the United Nations asserts that this phenomenon works against nature and the true interests of the majority: “Billionaire fantasies aside, there is no Planet B.“
Continuing his scathing attack, Mr. Guterres described humanity as a “weapon of mass destruction”, that is, “treat nature like a toilet”, and “authorized suicide”, referring to the human costs associated with the loss of nature and biodiversity.
The answer may lie in a global biodiversity agreement that addresses the causes of biodiversity loss – changes in land and sea use, overexploitation of biodiversity, Mr. Guterres suggests. species, climate change, pollution and invasive alien species – by addressing root causes such as harmful subsidies, misdirected investment, unsustainable food systems and consumption patterns and wider production.
Three actions to conserve biodiversity
The Secretary-General has outlined the action that needs to be taken to save nature, into three main areas.
The first involves the implementation of national plans to redirect subsidies and tax breaks away from activities that contribute to the destruction of nature, towards green solutions such as renewable energy, plastic reduction, food production, etc. eco-friendly products and sustainable resource exploitation.
These plans will also recognize the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities as stewards of nature.
The second concerns the private sector, which, according to Mr. Guterres, must recognize that profit and protection go hand in hand, meaning that the agriculture and food sectors move towards sustainable production and means of pollination. , pest control and natural fertilization; the timber, chemical, building and construction industries take their impact on nature into account in their business plans; and the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and other industries that exploit biodiversity share benefits equitably and equally.
“Greenwashing” – referring to companies’ unsubstantiated environmental claims – must end and the private sector needs to be held accountable for actions across every link of the business supply chain, he said. business.
Improved financial support from ‘Southern Hemisphere’ countries formed the basis for the Secretary-General’s third pillar of action.
Mr. Guterres called on international financial institutions and multilateral development banks to align their portfolios with the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
Experts call for focus on human rights
A group of independent experts released a statement on Tuesday, calling for the protection of human rights to be at the heart of every part of the framework document released from COP15.
In a landmark General Assembly resolution, adopted in July 2022, the United Nations recognized the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Experts argue that since healthy ecosystems and biodiversity are at the core of this right, states have an obligation to protect, conserve and restore biodiversity.
However, experts (David Boyd, Special Rapporteur on human rights and the environment; Ian Fry, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change; Francisco Cali Tzay, Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights) emphasized that measures to protect biodiversity cannot come at the expense of human rights.
