International partners gather for COP15 in Canada, with a focus on halting biodiversity loss around the world.

The 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will be gathering from December 7 – 19, 2022 in Montreal, Canada. Governments from around the world will come together to agree on a new set of goals to guide global action through 2030 to halt and reverse nature loss.

COP15 will focus on protecting nature and halting biodiversity loss around the world. There is an urgent need for international partners to halt and reverse the alarming loss of biodiversity worldwide. Nature is also critical to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals and limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees.

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was first signed by 150 government leaders at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. Its main objectives are:

• the conservation of biological diversity,
• the sustainable use of the components of biological diversity,
• the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.

The CBD is dedicated to promoting sustainable development and the Convention recognizes that biological diversity is about more than plants, animals and micro-organisms and their ecosystems – it is about people and our need for food security, medicines, fresh air and water, shelter, and a clean and healthy environment in which to live.

It is hoped that COP 15 will bring an adoption of an equitable and comprehensive framework matched by the resources needed for implementation, as well as clear targets to address overexploitation, pollution, fragmentation and unsustainable agricultural practices.

Canada will continue to advocate for international collaboration on an ambitious Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, including targeting 30 percent of lands and oceans conserved by 2030.