From Ars Technica · · 1m 20s
Nations agree on nature plan but lack the funds
Nearly 200 countries commit to speeding up biodiversity protection, but a $200 billion annual funding gap threatens to derail the 2030 conservation goals.
In brief
Nearly 200 countries commit to speeding up biodiversity protection, but a $200 billion annual funding gap threatens to derail the 2030 conservation goals. World leaders agreed to accelerate nature conservation efforts at a UN summit in Armenia, but acknowledged that current finance and action fall far short of meeting…
Nearly 200 nations miss conservation targets
Representatives from almost 200 countries gathered in Yerevan for two weeks to review progress on protecting about a third of the world's land and seas by 2030. They recognized conservation efforts were too slow.
The Yerevan Pathway accelerates nature protection
The COP17 talks concluded Saturday with agreement on the Yerevan Pathway to speed progress before the next summit in Ecuador in two years. It tackles harmful subsidies, increases support for developing countries, and strengthens monitoring.
Finance remains the biggest obstacle
Steven Guilbeault, former Canadian minister of environment and climate change, said finance remained one of the biggest obstacles. A fund for companies profiting from genetic materials stood largely empty, which he called especially disappointing.
“We need to mobilize substantially more public and private finance, reform subsidies that harm nature, and ensure that funding reaches the countries and communities on the front lines of the nature crisis.”
Two hundred billion dollars needed annually
Catherine Weller, global policy director at Fauna and Flora, said funding fell far short of the 2022 pledge.
“In a world of trillionaires, we can certainly afford to spend $200 billion a year on protecting and restoring the very thing keeping us all alive: nature.”
New commitments fall short of the need
Governments, philanthropists and businesses announced close to 2 billion dollars in new financial commitments at the summit.
The bottom line
World leaders agreed to accelerate nature conservation efforts at a UN summit in Armenia, but acknowledged that current finance and action fall far short of meeting 2030 targets.
