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Centering human rights in conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity
11 November 2024
Humanity is in the midst of the planet’s sixth mass extinction crisis. Biodiversity loss is decimating entire ecosystems with devastating impacts on the lives, livelihoods and rights of the people who depend on them. Urgent action is needed to advance human rights solutions to this crisis.
At COP16, which took place in Cali, Colombia, last week, leaders and experts from around the world came together to discuss this ongoing crisis. The summit, officially known as 16th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), is the world’s largest biodiversity summit. The aim of the summit is to promote measures that lead to the sustainable use and sharing of the benefits of biodiversity.
UN Human Rights took part in the summit, along with many of its partners, including environmental human rights defenders, Indigenous Peoples representatives, and civil society organizations and representatives from 175 states.
‘Making Peace with Nature’
The biggest UN biodiversity summit in history set out to advance ‘Peace with Nature’ - the official theme of the conference - by taking effective measures to operationalize the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Adopted at CBD COP15 in Montreal, the framework includes commitments to protect 30% of degraded ecosystems by 2030 and mobilize at least $200 billion annually.
Human rights solutions lead to better outcomes for people and the planet, said Ilze Brands Kehris, Assistant Secretary General for UN Human Rights.
UN Human Rights ASG Ilze Brands Kehris at COP16 Summit. © Dina Losada Castaño/OHCHR
“States’ efforts to address biodiversity loss and its impacts have far too often come at the expense of human rights”, she stressed. “In the name of conservation, Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, local communities and many others, have been removed from the lands and territories on which they depend. Only human rights-based conservation measures can ensure positive outcomes for people and the planet.”
A historic moment for Indigenous participation
For the first time, the CBD established a permanent Subsidiary Body for Indigenous Peoples and local communities. For the past 25 years, groups have worked hard to implement this provision of the Convention, which had been delegated to an ad hoc Working Group. After years of advocacy by Indigenous Peoples, civil society, and local communities, the newly established subsidiary body, which the Secretary General and UN Human Rights also called for’ will provide a permanent space for Indigenous Peoples and local communities to directly engage with Parties in supporting work under the Convention.
Brands Kehris also highlighted the unacceptable attacks against environmental human rights defenders, who face harassment, intimidation, criminalization, and deadly violence for trying to protect the environment. In Colombia alone, 248 environmental human rights defenders were killed in the past 8 years.
“Every attack on an environmental human rights defender is an attack on our collective freedoms and our environment, making our world less open, less informed, and less democratic”, Brands Kehris said.
Following advocacy by UN Human Rights, UN Women, and other key partners, Parties adopted COP16 decisions that affirm and build upon the Framework, which calls on States to ensure, amongst others, “the full protection of environmental human rights defenders.”
This milestone summit signals progress, but much remains to be done. A key next step is coming to an agreement on the strategy for the mobilization of financial resources. To ensure a viable future, human rights must be embedded at every level of biodiversity policy and decision-making, including resource mobilization.
