Foreign media attention: The "Kunming Declaration" shows China's ecological ambitions

The 15th high-level meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity officially adopted the Kunming Declaration on October 13, and foreign media pointed out that it showed China's ambitions in ecological protection.

Agence France-Presse Beijing reported on October 13 that the high-level meeting of the United Nations Conference on Biodiversity (Phase I) was recently held in Kunming, southwest China. A non-binding text was adopted, and Chinese officials noted at a press conference in Kunming that it brought together consensus that different countries were working together in the context of the pandemic.

The Kunming Declaration, to some extent, recounts the objectives of the text currently being negotiated by the 196 Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity.

The goal of the conference is to promote a framework for the restoration of biodiversity by 2030 at the latest, leading to the full realization of the 2050 vision of "harmonious coexistence between man and nature".

Elizabeth Mrema, Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, said at a press conference: "The call to action and declaration augur well for the ambition and impetus needed for negotiations and an effective framework. ”

She also stated that lessons had been learned as a result of the failure of States to fulfil the commitments made in the past, coupled with the deteriorating state of ecosystems necessary for humanity.

Some countries have pledged more funding for global biodiversity. The French Development Agency says it estimates that between now and 2030, about $722 billion to $967 billion will be needed annually.

According to reports, China has taken the lead in investing 1.5 billion yuan to set up a new fund to protect biodiversity in developing countries.

According to the Efe news agency Beijing reported on October 13, the United Nations Biodiversity Conference held in the southern Chinese city of Kunming adopted the "Kunming Declaration" during its high-level meeting on the 13th, and the participants expressed their commitment to establishing a series of mechanisms to strengthen biodiversity conservation.

One of the main objectives, the Declaration states, is to have adequate monitoring, reporting and review mechanisms in place to reverse current trends in biodiversity loss and to ensure that biodiversity is on the road to restoration by 2030 at the latest, thereby fully realizing the 2050 vision of "harmonious coexistence between man and nature".

In addition, according to the website of the German "Süddeutsche Zeitung" reported on October 13, environmental organizations gave a very positive evaluation of the first results of the Biodiversity Conference held in China. This is very unusual.

In the past, it was not uncommon for politicians to encourage each other on climate and environmental issues and observers to criticize each other harshly. However, following the adoption of the Declaration, WWF commented that this demonstrated the willingness of all parties to address biodiversity loss. The European Environmental Council even said that the parties adopted "strong principles".

The U.N. meeting in Kunming was intended to signal that authorities around the world were aware of the dangers of species extinction. The rate of destruction of the natural world has accelerated in recent decades, with the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services warning that as many as millions of species of flora and fauna could disappear. This can have unpredictable consequences for interactions in nature. Scientists warn that for humans, species extinctions could also become a more serious problem than climate change.

The Kunming Declaration now points to at least one direction, though it remains vague. Details are expected to be negotiated next year and a global agreement is formed.

Florian Titzer, a biodiversity policy expert at the World Wide Fund for Nature, argues that it is important for the international community to recognize that "a wide range of measures are needed".

The report pointed out that the position taken by China, the host of this conference, is highly anticipated by the outside world. China announced that it will take the lead in investing 1.5 billion yuan to establish a biodiversity fund. In addition, China will establish more nature reserves. According to Yunnan officials, the reserve will also protect tropical rainforests and the few elephant herds that still roam the area.

Dimitri Debor of the European Environmental Protection Agency's Beijing office said: "I believe that China's proportion of protected areas on land and sea will be very impressive. ”

On October 13, 2021, the 2020 High-level Meeting of the United Nations Conference on Biodiversity (Phase I) concluded in Kunming, Yunnan Province, and the meeting officially adopted the "Kunming Declaration", calling on all parties to take action to jointly build a community of life on earth. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Jin Liwang

Source: Reference News Network