Fersiwn Gymraeg ar gael ymaGuest blog by Joe Wilkins
Delayed over two years, the fifteenth Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity finally happened in December. Thankfully the conference is more widely known as COP15, which is a massive relief to us who have been following the process because that full name is a real mouthful!
To say that the road to Montreal was long would be a huge understatement! The conference was initially scheduled for May 2020 but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So that means COP15 was the culmination of over four years of difficult discussions, ever-changing logistics to cope with the impacts of the pandemic, and an uncertain geopolitical landscape.
Despite the best efforts of biodiversity campaigners and NGOs, media attention had been relatively limited in the lead-up to this meeting, being overshadowed by the climate change conference in Egypt and the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. But there was a final flurry of activity when Christiana Figueres, architect of the Paris Agreement, stated that COP15 could represent the “Paris moment” for Nature.
As I and many other delegates travelled to Montreal, there was one question on our minds: would the conference deliver? Would it live up to this “Paris moment for Nature” statement? We had a long two weeks ahead of us before we would know.
So, what was it like to be in Montreal?
Having attended the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow and hearing stories from COP27 in Egypt, I can say that the atmosphere at this biodiversity conference is almost a world apart. Of course, there was tension around the negotiations, and yes, there were several arguments between delegates. But it just didn’t have the same aggressive feeling as the climate processes. The event itself was smaller, which may contribute to this. Still, I also think the individuals present (ministers included) appeared more open to discussion.
That’s not to say that COP15 isn’t busy. It is a hive of activity with negotiations, side events on everything from indigenous rights to experimental genetic technology, and the stalls of countries, constituencies, and NGOs. I think COP15 was the busiest fortnight of my life! I was averaging 21,000 steps a day, running up and down the corridors of the venue.
For me, the side events and discussions around the negotiations were the most exciting part of the event. I learned about ideas and strategies that I had never really considered much. The one that stands out is the growing conversation around the Rights of Nature which is the principle that Nature has the right to exist and thrive. So far, this has mainly been implemented in Latin American countries, but it has sparked an interest in exploring what this could look like in a Wales.
I met with Welsh Climate Change Minister Julie James to discuss her plans for biodiversity action in Wales, especially relevant given the recommendations of the Biodiversity Deep Dive and the then still uncertain outcomes of COP15. I also presented a book of Welsh voices advocating for a Nature Positive Wales, which we had been gathering in the lead up to this conference.
As part of the Reserva: The Youth Land Trust delegation, we hand-delivered letters from global youth to delegates at COP15, including ten environment ministers, four chief negotiators, and nine directors of public agencies, among others. Each envelope contained unique handwritten or typed letters from people under 26 calling on delegates at COP15 to act now for Nature. Amid heavy policy talk, many representatives noted that these letters were the push they needed to continue working.
So for me, COP15 was an incredible networking and knowledge-sharing experience, and I left with a renewed sense of optimism, something quite rare for UN conferences.
But what were the actual outcomes of COP15?
The Kunming-Montreal Global biodiversity framework was the central focus of negotiations and the conference as a whole. Known by its working title, “The Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework”, it lays out guidance and targets for achieving the 2050 vision of living in harmony with Nature.
Now I know there are many arguments against having such conferences with delegates travelling from around the world. Are they not hypocritical? Does their impact justify the emissions? And so on! I can hand-on-heart say that they are crucial to the success of these processes. It felt like more progress was made on the new global framework in two weeks in Montreal than over two years of virtual meetings of various open-ended working groups. Whilst tracking the online sessions and the two pre-COP meetings in Geneva and Nairobi, I was sceptical that a framework would ever be finalised. At times it felt like we were moving further from an agreement with every meeting, with critical questions around funding, information sharing, and rights remaining unanswered. We all knew that Nature could not wait any longer and the signing of this framework was an essential step in reversing biodiversity loss globally.
So, believe me when I say I felt an enormous sense of relief and happiness when that gavel came down at the end of the closing plenary. There was hugging, jumping with joy, and maybe even a few tears shed.
Of course, the framework is not perfect. It is vague in places, watered down in others, and the question of financing implementation still looms large. Still, I left Montreal with a real sense of optimism. This framework now exists, and nearly every country on Earth has signed it. We’ve had biodiversity targets and frameworks before but I don’t think we had the society-wide awareness of the importance of Nature. Nature was for the enthusiasts but there has been a shift to a broader appreciation of our relationship with the world around us, and I do honestly think there is a greater will to achieve these goals.
I am not blindly optimistic and think that everything is now fine. I know we have a long way to go. But I believe this framework and the momentum from COP15 is a massive step in the right direction. I intend to play my part in carrying it forward and encourage everybody else to do so too.