Our planet is a big home filled with plants, animals, and people. COP16 is a major gathering where countries come together to make agreements and reach consensus on how to better take care of our shared home.
At this Summit, they talk about a plan called the Global Biodiversity Framework. Simply put, this plan is like a to-do list we all need to follow to keep nature healthy and to keep building a future on our planet.
What are these tasks?
Valuing nature: Realizing how important plants and animals are for every ecosystem.
Conserving nature: Protecting forests, rivers, and oceans to ensure the future of thousands of species.
Restoring nature: Recovering ecosystems that are at risk and taking action to help nature heal.
Using nature sustainably: Making use of natural resources without depleting them, so our children and grandchildren can enjoy them too.
Why is COP16 important?
COP16 is a great opportunity for all the countries involved in the pact to work together and follow a globally impactful plan. If we succeed, we’ll have a healthier planet and be able to live in harmony with nature for many more decades.
COP16 will take place in Colombia from October 21 to November 1, 2024, in the city of Cali.
We’re sharing some key facts about this summit and the importance of the agreements to be made in the coming years. (Remember, the deadline for these commitments is the year 2030.)
What is the Biodiversity COP?
It is the Conference of the Parties, the highest decision-making body of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
What is the Convention on Biological Diversity?
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was signed by leaders from 150 countries at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. This convention promotes sustainable development through a vision that includes both ecosystems and people.
What agreements are expected to be reached at the meeting to be held in Colombia?
Implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework: Countries are expected to present updates to their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs).
Review of the implementation status of the new framework: COP16 will be a key moment for governments to assess the progress made in implementing the new framework through the NBSAPs.
Development of the monitoring framework: COP16 is expected to further develop the monitoring framework and continue advancing resource mobilization for the implementation of the Global Framework.
Multilateral mechanism for the fair and equitable sharing of benefits: COP16 is expected to finalize and operationalize a multilateral mechanism for the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of digital sequence information on genetic resources.
Why is it important to hold this summit in Colombian territory?
In the words of the President of COP16 Colombia, Susana Muhamad González:
“The added value of hosting COP16 in Colombia lies in our vision of ‘Peace with Nature’ and in recognizing that the true fight of the 21st century is for life itself. If we can transform our relationship with nature, along with our production and consumption practices, and ensure that collective action drives life instead of destroying it, we will be addressing the most critical challenges of our time. Like the everlasting flower of Inírida, Colombians have learned the keys to resilience in order to achieve lasting peace in the most excluded regions of the country—those that also hold the greatest natural wealth. COP16 is not just a summit; it is the path that allows us to mobilize globally toward this shared purpose.”
You can learn all the details about this important event through the links we’ve shared below.
COP16 Colombia inauguración
https://www.wwf.org.co/cop16_en_colombia/#:~:text=La%20COP16%20es%20una%20oportunidad,la%20biodiversidad%20se%20valore%2C%20conserve%2C