Wetlands International at CBD COP15
The fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP-15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will take place in Montreal, Canada, and will see the adoption of the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.
The framework provides a strategic vision and a global roadmap for the conservation, protection, restoration and sustainable management of biodiversity and ecosystems for the next decade.
Why does COP15 matter for wetlands?
Although now only accounting for only around 6% of the Earth’s surface area, the diversity of life sustained by wetlands is disproportionately high, with approximately 40% of all known plant and animal species living or breeding in inland waters.
Despite their importance, inland water ecosystems have seen the greatest loss and degradation of the three realms, with more than 80% of inland waters lost compared to 70% of terrestrial area transformed, and 60% of oceans impacted. This ecosystem loss and degradation have seen a decline on an average of 83% in freshwater species populations since 1970, compared to 36% marine and 38% terrestrial.
To achieve the overall goal for 2030 of reversing biodiversity loss, it is crucial to acknowledge the role that natural inland waters play as critical habitats and in maintaining processes that underpin biodiversity.
Resources
Documents
Videos
News
Wetlands International welcomes the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Agreement
UN recognises Building with Nature Indonesia’s efforts with World Restoration Flagship award
Wetlands seek focused targets as CBD negotiations proceed at COP15
Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework: Ensuring protection and restoration of Inland Waters
Wetlands 2022: from Ramsar to the CBD COP15
The Mangrove Breakthrough: a call to action for a critical ecosystem
Wetlands: an answer to the climate crisis
Global Mangrove Watch platform updated with the latest data to 2020
CBD Framework proposal on Target 2 Ecosystem Restoration for Rivers
Wetlands International calls for global wetland targets ahead of critical CBD COP15 negotiations