International negotiations to save biodiversity: Renewing the futures?

COP 10 to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 2010 was a landmark for global biodiversity governance. A Strategic Plan was adopted with 20 global targets (the Aichi Targets) for the period 2011 – 2020 as an overarching framework on biodiversity. The Plan does not only focus on biodiversity per se, but also ecosystem services underpinned by biodiversity. Countries committed themselves to translate this overarching international framework into revised and updated national biodiversity strategies and action plans by 2015.

The Global Biodiversity Outlook 4 from 2014 showed that even though many initiatives are being taken around the world to conserve, restore and sustainably use biodiversity, much work still needs to be done in order to halt biodiversity loss and meet the Aichi Targets. In particular the targets that transcend traditional conservation measures and address the underlying causes of biodiversity across economic sectors seem to be far from being met. Less than three years remain to the expiration of the Strategic Plan and the Aichi Targets. While there is still some time to close the implementation gaps, we are approaching the point where we need to take stock of the lessons learned and plan for global action on biodiversity for the next 10 years with an open mind for new approaches.