18,000 participants, representing the 193 Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and their partners, closed the Nagoya Biodiversity Summit (18th to 29th October) by adopting historic decisions that will permit the community of nations to meet the unprecedented challenges of the continued loss of biodiversity compounded by climate change.
Governments agreed on a package of measures that they believe will ensure that the ecosystems of the planet will continue to sustain human well-being into the future.
The strategic plan adopted by the meeting included 20 headline targets, organised under 5 strategic goals that address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss, reduce the pressures on biodiversity, safeguard biodiversity at all levels, enhance the benefits provided by biodiversity and provide for capacity-building.
The Parties:
– agreed to at least halve, and where possible bring close to zero, the rate of loss of natural habitat, including forests
– established a target of 17% of terrestrial and inland water areas and 10% of marine and coastal areas
– through conservation and restoration, governments will restore at least 15% of degraded areas
– will make special efforts to reduce the pressures faced by coral reefs
For further info see http://www.cbd.int/.