Biological Convention Flashcards
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
known informally as the Biodiversity Convention, is a multilateral treaty. The Convention has three main goals: the conservation of biological diversity (or biodiversity); the sustainable use of its components; and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources. Its objective is to develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, and it is often seen as the key document regarding sustainable development.
when
The Convention was opened for signature at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro on 5 June 1992 and entered into force on 29 December 1993. The United States is the only UN member state which has not ratified the Convention. It has two supplementary agreements, the Cartagena Protocol and Nagoya Protocol.
what are cartgena and nagoya protocol
The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity is an international treaty governing the movements of living modified organisms (LMOs) resulting from modern biotechnology from one country to another. It was adopted on 29 January 2000 as a supplementary agreement to the CBD and entered into force on 11 September 2003.
The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS) to the Convention on Biological Diversity is another supplementary agreement to the CBD. It provides a transparent legal framework for the effective implementation of one of the three objectives of the CBD: the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources. The Nagoya Protocol was adopted on 29 October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan, and entered into force on 12 October 2014
International year of BIODIVERSITY
2010 was also the International Year of Biodiversity, and the Secretariat of the CBD was its focal point. Following a recommendation of CBD signatories at Nagoya, the UN declared 2011 to 2020 as the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity in December 2010. The Convention’s Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, created in 2010, include the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.
Composition
Drafted -22 May 1992
Signed -5 June 1992 – 4 June 1993
Location Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
New York, United States
Effective 29 December 1993
Condition Ratification by 30 States
Parties
196 States
Executive secretary
As of 1 December 2019, the acting executive secretary is Elizabeth Maruma Mrema.
The previous executive secretaries were: pl:Cristiana Pașca Palmer (2017–2019), Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias (2012–2017), Ahmed Djoghlaf (2006–2012), Hamdallah Zedan (1998–2005), Calestous Juma (1995–1998), and Angela Cropper (1993–1995)
International bodies established
Conference of the Parties (COP)
The Convention’s governing body is the Conference of the Parties (COP), consisting of all governments (and regional economic integration organizations) that have ratified the treaty. This ultimate authority reviews progress under the Convention, identifies new priorities, and sets work plans for members. The COP can also make amendments to the Convention, create expert advisory bodies, review progress reports by member nations, and collaborate with other international organizations and agreements.
The Conference of the Parties uses expertise and support from several other bodies that are established by the Convention. In addition to committees or mechanisms established on an ad hoc basis, the main organs are:
CBD Secretariat, SBSTTA, and SBI
CBD Secretariat
The CBD Secretariat, based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, operates under UNEP, the United Nations Environment Programme. Its main functions are to organize meetings, draft documents, assist member governments in the implementation of the programme of work, coordinate with other international organizations, and collect and disseminate information.
SBSTTA
The SBSTTA is a committee composed of experts from member governments competent in relevant fields. It plays a key role in making recommendations to the COP on scientific and technical issues. It provides assessments of the status of biological diversity and of various measures taken in accordance with Convention, and also gives recommendations to the Conference of the Parties, which may be endorsed in whole, in part or in modified form by the COPs. As of 2020 SBSTTA had met 23 times, with a 24th meeting taking place in Geneva, Switzerland in 2022.
SBI
In 2014, the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity established the Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI) to replace the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Review of Implementation of the Convention. The four functions and core areas of work of SBI are: (a) review of progress in implementation; (b) strategic actions to enhance implementation; (c) strengthening means of implementation; and (d) operations of the Convention and the Protocols. The first meeting of the SBI was held on 2–6 May 2016 and the second meeting was held on 9–13 July 2018, both in Montreal, Canada. The third meeting of the SBI will be held in March 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland.[8] The Bureau of the Conference of the Parties serves as the Bureau of the SBI. The current chair of the SBI is Ms. Charlotta Sörqvist of Sweden.
Parties
As of 2016, the Convention has 196 Parties, which includes 195 states and the European Union. All UN member states—with the exception of the United States—have ratified the treaty. Non-UN member states that have ratified are the Cook Islands, Niue, and the State of Palestine. The Holy See and the states with limited recognition are non-Parties. The US has signed but not ratified the treaty, because ratification requires a two-thirds majority in the Senate and is blocked by Republican Party senators.
The European Union created the Cartagena Protocol (see below) in 2000 to enhance biosafety regulation and propagate the “precautionary principle” over the “sound science principle” defended by the United States. Whereas the impact of the Cartagena Protocol on domestic regulations has been substantial, its impact on international trade law remains uncertain. In 2006, the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled that the European Union had violated international trade law between 1999 and 2003 by imposing a moratorium on the approval of genetically modified organisms (GMO) imports. Disappointing the United States, the panel nevertheless “decided not to decide” by not invalidating the stringent European biosafety regulations.
Implementation by the Parties to the Convention is achieved using two means:
National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAP)
and National Reports
National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAP) are the principal instruments for implementing the Convention at the national level. The Convention requires that countries prepare a national biodiversity strategy and to ensure that this strategy is included in planning for activities in all sectors where diversity may be impacted. As of early 2012, 173 Parties had developed NBSAPs.
The United Kingdom, New Zealand and Tanzania carried out elaborate responses to conserve individual species and specific habitats. The United States of America, a signatory who had not yet ratified the treaty by 2010, produced one of the most thorough implementation programs through species recovery programs and other mechanisms long in place in the US for species conservation.
Singapore established a detailed National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan. The National Biodiversity Centre of Singapore represents Singapore in the Convention for Biological Diversity.
National Reports
In accordance with Article 26 of the Convention, Parties prepare national reports on the status of implementation of the Convention.
Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (2002)
In April 2002, the Parties of the UN CBD adopted the recommendations of the Gran Canaria Declaration Calling for a Global Plant Conservation Strategy, and adopted a 16-point plan aiming to slow the rate of plant extinctions around the world by 2010.
Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020
Also at the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties, held from 18 to 29 October 2010 in Nagoya,[25] a revised and updated “Strategic Plan for Biodiversity, 2011-2020” was agreed and published. This document included the “Aichi Biodiversity Targets”, comprising 20 targets that address each of five strategic goals defined in the plan. The strategic plan includes the following strategic goals:
Strategic Goal A: Address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming biodiversity across government and society
Strategic Goal B: Reduce the direct pressures on biodiversity and promote sustainable use
Strategic Goal C: To improve the status of biodiversity by safeguarding ecosystems, species and genetic diversity
Strategic Goal D: Enhance the benefits to all from biodiversity and ecosystem services
Strategic Goal E: Enhance implementation through participatory planning, knowledge management and capacity building
Upon the launch of Agenda 2030, CBD released a technical note mapping and identifying synergies between the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the 20 Aichi Biodiversity Targets. This helps to understand the contributions of biodiversity to achieving the SDGs.
post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
A new plan, known as the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), is being developed to guide action through 2030.[28] A first draft of this framework was released in July 2021,[29] and its final content is being discussed and negotiated as part of the ongoing COP 15 meetings. The draft framework includes a number of ambitious goals, including a commitment to designate at least 30 percent of global land and sea as protected areas (known as the “30 by 30” initiative). Reducing agricultural pollution and sharing the benefits of digital sequence information have arisen as key points of contention among Parties.
