European Union

Working Group Co-Chairs Francis Ogwal and Basile van Havre gaveling the meeting to an end. The second meeting of the Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (WG) resumed for the final day on Saturday to address pending issues, including negotiations on the zero draft of the global biodiversity framework (GBF). Delegates heard a report back from the contact group on Tools and Solutions for Implementation and Mainstreaming, and agreed on elements presented in the group’s report compiled by the co-leads. The WG thereafter reviewed and approved the final recommendations of the meeting with minor amendments, and adopted the meeting’s report.During the closing session, Elizabeth Mrema, Acting Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), said while all roads led to Rome for the second meeting of the WG, the journey to generate a clear, actionable, and transformative GBF continues.  Providing regional statements: The African Group, noting the increased level of ambition based on new elements included into the GBF, called for additional funds for implementation; The EU said the GBF should be realistic and ambitious enough to communicate and engage everyone in the desired transformative change; The Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) said the desire to conserve biodiversity is clearly reflected in the GBF’s ambitions, but cautioned that financial resources have always been the “Achilles heal of the CBD”; New Zealand, on behalf of a group of non-EU developed countries, emphasized the need to involve indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs), women, youth, subnational and local governments, and the private sector in order to provide a roadmap for transformative actions; and Central and Eastern Europe noted the importance of measurable indicators and called for sharing of outcomes of upcoming consultative meetings. As weary delegates arrived in plenary on the last day of the meeting of the WG, words of praise and thanks were abundant for the hard work and constructive participation of co-chairs, co-leads, the secretariat, delegates, and participants. The lengthy report from the contact group on Tools and Solutions for Implementation and Mainstreaming, showcased the extensive discussions held during the last meeting of the contact group, which lasted untill midnight on Friday. The late session induced some delegates to blame minor confusions with respect to the report of the contact group on a “lack of sleep” and excitement to “wrap up the meeting.” As the time for closing statements rolled around, delegates continued to praise the tone and collaborative spirit of the meeting, yet highlighted the extensive amount of work yet to be done. Elizabeth Mrema, Acting Executive Secretary, CBD highlighted that “time is not on our side,” especially in light of the great number of requests made in Rome. Yet, she expressed confidence that the WG will succeed and deliver a robust and ambitious GBF in Kunming to reverse biodiversity loss, end the cycle of destruction, and ensure that future generations will not have to face a planet irreversibly damaged by human activity.Co-Chairs Basile Van Havre and Francis Ogwal, gaveled the meeting to a close at 5:44 pm. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily digital coverage. Α summary and analysis report from the 2nd Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Mike Muzurakis For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Elizabeth Mrema, Acting Executive Secretary, CBD Secretariat Naoki Nakayama, Japan Andrea Cruz-Angón, Mexico Martha Mphatso Kalemba, Malawi Sujit Kumar Bajpayee, India Reinhard Schnidrig, Switzerland Jorge Murillo, Colombia Tia Stevens, Australia Jane Stratford, UK From L-R: Evelyn Vera Barreto, Mexico; Ines Verleye, Belgium; and Gabriele Obermayr, Austria Aleksandr Proskurin, Russian Federation Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, CBD Secretariat Charlotta Sörqvist, Sweden Delegates from the EU conferring during a break in negotiations Yangzhao Sun, China View of the dais during the plenary Working Group Co-Chair Francis Ogwal Working Group Co-Chair Basile van Havre Charlotta Sörqvist, Sweden, conferring with the Secretariat Leonardo Cleaver de Athayde, Brazil Joaquín Salzberg, Argentina The Costa Rican delegation (with Francisco the Sloth) Guilherme da Costa, Guinea-Bissau Alfred Oteng Yeboah, Ghana Christine Samwaroo, Guyana Rosemary Paterson, New Zealand Rapporteur Lyna Al-Awathi, Kuwait Neville Ash, UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC)  

From L-R: Working Group Co-Chair Basile van Havre; CBD Deputy Executive Secretary David Cooper; and Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, CBD Secretariat The second meeting of the Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (WG) resumed on Friday, with the first meeting of the fourth contact group on sections of the zero draft on the post-2020 global biodiversity framework (GBF), clustered under, “tools and solutions for implementation and mainstreaming.” During lunch, delegates participated in an information session on the role of the financial and business sectors in implementing the GBF.  Ines Verleye, Belgium, and Luciana Melchert, Brazil, reported on a thematic workshop on Resource Mobilization for the GBF, held in Berlin from 14 to 16 January 2020. Verleye noted that the business and private sector is willing to engage, but is having difficulty finding ways and places to “dance together” with governments.Marco Lambertini, WWF International, called for the parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to ensure clear targets for nature, commensurate to the carbon neutrality target in the Paris Agreement on climate change, for government, business, and civil society to rally around. Katia Karousakis, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), presented on the finance, economic, and business case for action on biodiversity, and a report prepared for the Meeting of the G7 Environment Ministers to be held in May 2020. She called for the CBD to create a multi-stakeholder advisory group on biodiversity, business, and finance. Akanksha Khatri, World Economic Forum, presented a suit of reports under the theme, “the New Nature Economy.” She outlined that this work has classified threats to biodiversity from three socio-economic systems as well as the transitions needed in these sectors, namely: food, land, and ocean use; infrastructure and the built environment; and energy and extractives. Stephan Hirschi and Antonios Koumbarakis, PwC Switzerland, presented the report “Nature is too big to fail – Biodiversity: the next frontier in financial risk management.” Hirschi noted different financial risks associated with biodiversity loss, inter alia: increased costs of capital or lending requirements; increased insurance claims; increased risk of default; loss of investment value related to reputational risks; and changes in business market value. In the afternoon plenary, delegates heard report-backs from the co-leads of contact groups, outlining progress achieved and presenting the conference room papers that would provide inputs for redrafting the GBF.With only one more day of negotiations left, delegates entered Friday’s agenda optimistic that the steady progress made over the week would not be interrupted by the fears of the Coronavirus reaching Rome. The updates by the CBD Secretariat that the morning health checks at the entrance of the meeting venue have not yielded any cases of concern further reassured delegates that their choice to remain in Rome was not just a leap of faith, but a worthwhile decision for the good of the future GBF. Much praise was heard throughout the day for the spirit of cooperation and compromise that has prevailed in contact groups and plenary. To this regard Co-Lead of the contact group on reducing threats to biodiversity Wadzi Goredema-Mandivenyi (South Africa) reflected that, “the spirit of colleagueship was felt, making the task of co-leads pleasant and I hope this atmosphere will follow the WG from Rome to Cali.” IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily digital coverage. Α summary and analysis report from the 2nd Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Mike Muzurakis For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Plenary Session Working Group Co-Chairs Francis Ogwal and Basile van Havre Jane Stratford and Andrew Stott, UK Evelyn Vera Barreto, Mexico Working Group Co-Chairs and Secetariat conferring Takafumi Osawa, Japan Ana Kobašlić, EU Ángela Teves Libarona, Argentina Carolina Díaz Acosta, Colombia Wadzanayi Goredema-Mandivenyi, South Africa The Colombian delegation From L-R: Dolores Amelia Arreguín Prado; Ana Di Pangracio; and Mrinalini Rai, CBD Women Caucus From L-R: Joaquín Salzberg; Ángela Teves Libarona; and Luciano Martín Donadio Linares, Argentina Contact Groups From L-R: Kathryn Garforth, CBD Secretariat; Contact Group 4 Co-Lead Teona Karchava, Georgia; Contact Group 4 Co-Lead Charlotta Sörqvist, Sweden; and Erie Tamale, CBD Secretariat Daniel Wai-Poi, New Zealand John Clorley, UK Norbert Bärlocher, Switzerland, with Alexander Shestakov, CBD Secretariat Yassir Ahmed Hassan Nasr, Qatar, with Serhat Erbaş, Turkey Inna Romanchenko, Russian Federation, and Saeid Soufizadeh, Iran Jorge Murillo, Colombia Alexander Shestakov, CBD Secretariat, and Working Group Co-Chair Basile van Havre Giovanni Ruta, World Bank Luciano Martin Donadio Linares, Argentina Yangzhao Sun, China Information Session 5: The role of the Financial and Business Sectors in Implementing the Post-2020 Framework View of the dais during the session Marco Lambertini, WWF International Katia Karousakis, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Ines Verleye, Belgium  

Working Group Co-Chairs and Secetariat conferring The second meeting of the Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (WG) resumed on Thursday morning for a plenary session, which included report-backs from the co-chairs of three contact groups outlining progress on the zero draft of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework (GBF).Delegates also continued general statements on the zero draft, focusing their interventions on: tools and solutions for implementation and mainstreaming; implementation support mechanisms; enabling conditions; responsibility and transparency; and outreach, awareness, and uptake. During lunch, delegates attended a special session on the Role of Science for the GBF, which was organized as a virtual panel involving the GBF and the World Biodiversity Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on the same dates. Panelists included: WG Co-Chair Basile van Havre, who emphasized the need for interdisciplinary scientific support for the GBF, adding that national implementation plans for the GBF are in tandem with those at the global scale; WG Co-Chair Francis Ogwal, who reported on strong requests for guidance on ensuring conservation, sustainable use, and access and benefit-sharing adequately referenced in the GBF; Anne Larigauderie, Executive Secretary, Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), who drew attention to the need for progress in addressing direct and indirect drivers of biodiversity loss, and for biodiversity observatories on order to monitor changes in biodiversity; David Obura, Director, Coastal Oceans Research and Development – Indian Ocean (CORDIO) East Africa, who said ecological functions need emphasis in the GBF, adding that goals and targets should be framed as catchy “headlines,” to ensure policy uptake; Hesiquio Benítez Díaz (Mexico), Chair of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical, and Technological Advice (SBSTTA), who highlighted the role that SBSTTA will play in ensuring that goals and targets are scientifically sound; and David Cooper, Deputy Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), who said that the upcoming IPBES assessment on transformative change will be key in guiding countries on options for achieving such change. In the afternoon, Contact Group 2 reconvened for its third and final negotiation on the zero draft text on “reducing threats to biodiversity.” In the evening, Contact Group 3 reconvened for its second negotiation on, “meeting people’s needs through sustainable benefit-sharing.”Although Contact Group Co-Chairs praised delegates for their constructive discussion thus far, lingering tensions came to the fore on the plenary floor through the re-emergence of discussions on common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR) when considering implementation support mechanisms. Delegates took a trip down memory lane – way back to 1992 and the negotiations on the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, disagreeing on the relevance of the CBDR principle to the CBD. One seasoned observer expressed concern that negotiations might lose their constructive tone and hamper the ability of parties to make progress on the GBF at this meeting, should they go much further down the CBDR “rabbit hole.” Further discussions on the issue of baselines, although not explicitly addressed during this meeting awaiting scientific advice from the next SBSTTA session reinforced the feeling that the path to a successful post-2020 framework will not be a walk in the park. In the afternoon and evening, contact groups resumed on goals and threats, where, according to most observers, constructive ideas were tabled and the spirit of collaboration prevailed. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily digital coverage. Α summary and analysis report from the 2nd Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Mike Muzurakis For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Plenary Session View of the dais during the plenary session Contact Group on Goals, Mission, and Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Decisions Co-Chair Vinod Mathur, India Evelyn Vera Barreto, Mexico Shonisani Mathews Munzhedzi, South Africa Sujit Kumar Bajpayee, India Joaquín Salzberg, Argentina View of the dais during a break in negotiations Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, CBD Secretariat Leonardo Cleaver de Athayde, Brazil From L-R: Co-Chair Francis Ogwal; Co-Chair Basile van Havre; CBD Deputy Executive Secretary David Cooper; and Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, CBD Secretariat Lena Chan, Singapore Christine Echookit Akello, Uganda Martha Mphatso Kalemba, Malawi Yoliangel Rivas Orta, Venezuela Elisabeth Heseltine, UN Report Writer Delegates from Indonesia Contact Groups Mamadou Diallo, Senegal Adam van Opzeeland, New Zealand From L-R: Contact group on reducing threats to biodiversity Co-Chairs Wadzanayi Goredema-Mandivenyi, South Africa and Gabriele Obermayr, Austria; and Alexander Shestakov, CBD Secretariat Vin Fleming, UK Thomas Gilrane, Australia Delegates from Argentina conferring Georgina Catacora-Vargas, Latin American Council of Social Sciences Jennifer Tauli Corpuz, the Philippines From L-R: Caridad Canales, CBD Secretariat; Worku Damena Yifru, CBD Secretariat; John Scott, CBD Secretariat; and Co-Chairs for the Contact Group on Meeting People’s Needs Anne Teller, EU and Jorge Murillo, Colombia Special Session on the Role of Science for the Post-2020 Biodiversity Framework From L-R: SBSTTA Chair Hesiquio Benítez Díaz; Anne Larigauderie, Executive Secretary, Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES); and David Obura, Director, Coastal Oceans Research and Development - Indian Ocean (CORDIO) East Africa SBSTTA Chair Hesiquio Benítez Díaz CBD Deputy Executive Secretary David Cooper Anne Larigauderie, Executive Secretary, IPBES David Obura, Director, CORDIO East Africa From L-R: David Ainsworth, CBD Secretariat; Co-Chair Francis Ogwal; and Co-Chair Basile van Havre