Earlier this month, the COP15 agreement in Montreal, Canada, on a Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) commits countries to implementing and funding ambitious global targets and national plans that can halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity. China’s Minister of Ecology and Environment, Huang Runqiu, is the President of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15). Huang announced that an international biodiversity agreement was reached (the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework) that commits to setting a target to conserve at least 30 percent of land, freshwater, and ocean globally by 2030 and restore 30 percent of degraded land while respecting the rights and leadership of Indigenous peoples and local communities, a significant marker has been achieved.
Negotiations before the conference were deeply divisive, yet with Canada and China as co-Chairs of COP 15, they were able to work together to encourage other participating nations to set aside differences and agree on a framework.
COP co-Chair Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change, marked the importance of the success of COP15, saying, “In Montréal, we have risen to the challenge and united as one global community to address the crisis faced by nature. We agreed on an ambitious path forward for our planet and have given ourselves the tools to turn the tide. This is a historic moment for nature, and it is our only chance to save what we love and hold dear, before it is too late.”
A special exclusive interview with China's ambassador to Canada, Cong Peiwu, on COP15 and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework will be published by Ottawa Life Magazine over the holiday break. In the meantime, to read the agreement, please click the link below.
PHOTO: ChinaDaily.com.cn
