COP16: Peace with nature

19th November, 2024

With up to one million species threatened with extinction and ongoing deforestation, biodiversity loss is a growing global policy and business priority¹. Continued degradation of ecosystem services is estimated to lead to a loss of circa US$480 billion per annum according to the WWF Global Futures report ^{2 3}. The Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is a critical meeting that takes place every two years, aiming at addressing the accelerating global biodiversity crisis with international collaboration and actionable commitments.

'The planet doesn't have time to lose,' urged COP16 President Susana Muhamad, underscoring the urgency of the conference held from 21^st October to 1^st November 2024 in Colombia. This COP marks the first meeting since the 'Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework' (GBF) was agreed at the summit in Montreal two years ago.

Comparable to the Paris Agreement on climate change, the GBF includes four goals for 2050 and 23 ambitious targets to be achieved by 2030, including conserving and managing 30% of the world's land, waters and sea and restoring 30% of degraded ecosystems globally⁴. Building on this international commitment, the European Union (EU) approved the EU Restoration Law in June 2024, after significant delays and resistance. The regulation binds EU member states to restore at least 20% of their land and sea areas by 2030 and ultimately to restore all ecosystems in need of restoration by 2050. In line with this, EU countries are expected to submit National Restoration Plans to the European Commission by mid-2026⁵.

Ireland has shown active commitment to the GBF targets, as Minister for Nature, Heritage and Electoral Reform Malcolm Noonan attended, he highlighted at the conference that "(Ireland has) expanded protected areas in (its) seas and oceans from 2.4% to almost 10%, and (Ireland is) committed to meeting (its) target of 30% by 2030". This approach aligns with Ireland's newly published 4^th National Biodiversity Action Plan (NBAP), which outlines actionable steps and goals that contribute to the GBF's objectives⁶.

Davy Horizon's key takeaways of COP16

Progress and challenges in implementing the GBF

Talks were overshadowed by a lack of progress on implementing the GBF. According to the Protected Planet Report 2024, the official progress report on the 30% by 2030 target, so far, 17.6% of land and inland waters and 8.4% of the ocean and coastal areas globally are within documented protected and conserved areas, a less than 5% increase for both in the past two years⁷. Further, as part of the GBF, countries committed to submit new national biodiversity pledges, National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) before COP16. There were no significant advancements on funding mechanisms or alignment between national commitments needed to achieve GBF biodiversity targets, with many countries still behind on NBSAP submissions. By the end of the COP16, out of the 196 parties, only 44 had published their NBSAP⁸. Ireland, however in January 2024, was among the first to publish its NBSAP – Ireland’s 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan⁹.

Indigenous participation in GBF implementation

Progressive decision on participation of Indigenous People in GBF implementation. Indigenous people and local communities play a critical role in the conservation of nature, however often they don’t receive the formal recognition or necessary support needed. Delegates decided to establish a permanent subsidiary body to represent indigenous interests, they also agreed on a new Programme of Work and other provisions related to indigenous people and local communities to ensure a meaningful and effective participation while implementing the Convention. The program aims to address values, rights, and traditional knowledge and practices as part of the frameworks agenda¹⁰. The session did not result in a clear financial system to adequately fund and support Indigenous-led biodiversity conservation projects, and there was limited discussion around enhancing legal protection for Indigenous land rights, which are essential for their role in conservation.

New global mechanism for sharing benefits from Digital Genetic Information

A new global mechanism to share benefits from digital genetic information from plants and animals was established. The decision on the ‘Cali Fund’ states that companies using Digital Sequence Information (DSI) from genetic biodiversity resources in their products should pay a 1% of their profits from the use of DSI or 0.1% of their revenue into the fund. Since this genetic information is often sourced in developing, biodiversity-rich countries by businesses from the global north that use them to make products, such as drugs, cosmetics and food, establishing this international mechanism ensures a fair distribution of the benefits from DSI. The decision states that half of the benefits going into the fund must be used to meet the needs of indigenous communities, however the contributions to the fund are voluntary and non-binding¹¹. The voluntary nature of the contributions might limit the impact of the fund.

Biodiversity as a business priority

Following a yearlong pilot programme, the Science Based Targets Network (SBTN) announced that the first set of companies, Kering, GSK, and Holcim, adopted validated targets for nature, specifically freshwater and land, advancing ambitions and measurable corporate action on nature¹². This aligns with a growing business interest in biodiversity and nature risks and opportunities. As the EU Restoration Law entered into force, the European Commission Impact Assessment on the law stated that every euro spent on restoration can deliver a return on investment of €8 to €38¹³. Earlier this year, Davy Horizons published a White Paper on Biodiversity and Nature, outlining risks and opportunities for business, as well as the drivers of the focus on biodiversity and nature, and how business will be impacted by policy, law, and other initiatives on this topic. Nature-related reporting including assessing and communicating impacts and dependencies on nature was another key discussion in relation to biodiversity as a business priority. The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) published a roadmap for upgrading market-access to decision-useful Nature related data for consultation and feedback¹⁴ and a discussion paper on nature transition planning¹⁵.

"Climate change is a primary driver of biodiversity loss. And climate change depends on biodiversity as part of the solution. So clearly the two are linked and cannot be separated" - Elizabeth Mrema, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations.

In summary, COP16 marked some progress in the global commitment to biodiversity and nature, such as supporting indigenous participation in biodiversity conservation. However, many critical issues regarding biodiversity finance, resource mobilisation, and the establishment of a robust monitoring mechanism are still pending. These elements are essential to fully implement the GBF. ¹⁶

Biodiversity is emerging as a priority area in Ireland’s national policy discussions with progress in aligning with EU-wide targets, COP16 highlighted the need for more robust implementation at the national level, particularly regarding mobilising finance for biodiversity initiatives and creating effective monitoring systems. Ireland’s ongoing efforts to integrate biodiversity protection into agriculture and forestry policies will be crucial in ensuring that it meets its commitments under the GBF and EU restoration goals.

How Davy Horizons can help

Davy Horizons sustainability advisors work with PLCs, large private companies, government bodies, semi-states, and not-for-profits to incorporate sustainability credibly in their business aligned to regulation, industry best practice and stakeholder demands. We provide sustainability consultancy services across all sectors and topics including on biodiversity. Contact us at sustainability@davy.ie