© O. Pota Participants in the Nairobi meeting plan to pave the way for the key Conference of the Parties (COP 17). Meeting on implementation of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity kicks off in Nairobi Climate and environment
A meeting on the implementation of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity kicked off in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi on Tuesday. Its participants plan to assess global progress in this area and prepare the way for the key Conference of the Parties (COP-17), which will be held from October 19 to 30 in Yerevan, Armenia.
Astrid Schomaker, Executive Secretary of the Convention, stressed that biodiversity remains an under-appreciated topic compared to climate change, even though it provides humanity with food, clean water, climate resilience and development opportunities. According to her, the world is facing a deep crisis: the loss of biodiversity is happening faster than attempts are being made to stop this process.
Shomaker noted the special significance of holding the meeting in Africa, where about a quarter of the world’s biodiversity is concentrated. The continent, on the front line of climate shocks, faces severe limitations in accessing finance and technology to protect nature. Key topics for discussion in Nairobi will be resource mobilization, integrating biodiversity into economic planning and involving financial institutions in environmental decisions.
The Executive Secretary expressed concern that the main drivers of biodiversity loss – climate change, the spread of invasive species, pollution and overexploitation of natural resources – continue to intensify. She called the most alarming fact that the global economy is “financing the destruction of nature”: states and companies spend 30 times more money on activities that damage ecosystems than on their restoration. unprecedented level of country involvement. More and more governments, companies and financial institutions are seeking to assess the extent of humanity’s dependence on nature, analyze risks and change behavior patterns. There is also a growing public understanding that working in harmony with nature benefits everyone.
The Kunming-Montreal Framework, adopted by 196 countries, serves as a roadmap to achieving the global vision of “living in harmony with nature” by 2050. The meeting in Nairobi will be a key step towards its implementation.