Convention on Biological Diversity

About: Convention on Biological Diversity is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 2232 publications have been published within this topic receiving 65599 citations. The topic is also known as: CBD & United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.

Biodiversity in the Green Economy

Abstract: Biodiversity in the Green Economy: Setting the stage 2. Biodiversity in the Green Economy: what biodiversity do we need? 3. Chapter Biodiversity and the Forestry Sector 4. Uncovering hidden trade-offs in the Green Economy: Biodiversity and the manufacturing, transport and renewable energy sectors 5. The multifaceted contribution of biodiversity to human wellbeing: Lessons from The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) Initiative 6. Promoting sustainable use of biodiversity in socio-ecological production landscapes 7. Biodiversity and ecosystem services in European cultural landscapes: Pathways, pitfalls, and perspectives 8. Guiding principles for green economic development in the marine environment: Insights from small-scale fisheries and marine protected areas 9. Green Infrastructure: A bridging concept between biodiversity conservation and the Green Economy 10. Organizational, management and accounting perspectives on biodiversity 11. Payments for ecosystem services as a mechanism to promote biodiversity conservation in a Green Economy: Potentials and limitations 12. REDD+ forest carbon investments, biodiversity and the promise of a Green Economy 13. Biodiversity governance: A global perspective from the Convention on Biological Diversity 14. Exploring barriers to the integration of biodiversity concerns across EU policy 15. Biodiversity and green governance in Brazil: Innovative solutions to target resources for conservation and equity 16. The Green Economy as an Opportunity to Improve U.S. Biodiversity Assistance 17. Biodiversity in the Green Economy: moving beyond the rhetoric

Prevalence of sustainable and unsustainable use of wild species inferred from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Abstract: Unsustainable exploitation of wild species represents a serious threat to biodiversity and to the livelihoods of local communities and Indigenous peoples. However, managed, sustainable use has the potential to forestall extinctions, aid recovery, and meet human needs. We analyzed species-level data for 30,923 species from 13 taxonomic groups on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species to investigate patterns of intentional biological resource use. Forty percent of species (10,098 of 25,009 species from 10 data-sufficient taxonomic groups) were used. The main purposes of use were pets, display animals, horticulture, and human consumption. Intentional use is currently contributing to elevated extinction risk for 28-29% of threatened or near threatened (NT) species (2752-2848 of 9753 species). Intentional use also affected 16% of all species used (1597-1631 of 10,098). However, 72% of used species (7291 of 10,098) were least concern, of which nearly half (3469) also had stable or improving population trends. The remainder were not documented as threatened by biological resource use, including at least 172 threatened or NT species with stable or improving populations. About one-third of species that had use documented as a threat had no targeted species management actions to directly address this threat. To improve use-related red-list data, we suggest small amendments to the relevant classification schemes and required supporting documentation. Our findings on the prevalence of sustainable and unsustainable use, and variation across taxa, can inform international policy making, including the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

Business to the rescue: private sector actors and global environmental regimes’ legitimacy

Abstract: In 2006, Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) adopted decision VIII/17 to further involve the private sector in the activities of the Convention. This initiative mainly aims at improving the current regime’s legitimacy. By increasing business involvement, decision VIII/17 can be viewed within the context of the current academic debate on the ‘privatisation’ of environmental governance, which refers to the growing importance of private actors in the formulation of environmental policies. Against this background, this article aims at: (1) assessing the extent to which decision VIII/17 might reverse the CBD’s legitimacy crisis and (2) analysing the issues at stake when private sector actors are involved in environmental regimes. In order to do so, the article analyses the consequences of decision VIII/17 in terms of internal—representation and transparency—and external—institutional efficiency and implementation—legitimacy. The study is based on an extended empirical scrutiny of the negotiations linked to decision VIII/17. While adopting a general conceptualisation of legitimacy, the value added by the study is to broaden the usual understanding of business strategies towards environmental issues. In particular, this article shows how decision VIII/17 has generated several reactions—defensive as well as proactive—among the business community. At the practical level, the article proposes several recommendations to secure a constructive participation of all categories of business actors in biodiversity governance. At the theoretical level, it calls for a change in deterministic visions of economic actors’ interests.

Intellectual Property, State Sovereignty, and Biotechnology

Abstract: The issue of biopiracy has attracted considerable attention in recent years. The Convention on Biological Diversity adopted a principle of state sovereignty over biological resources and the genetic information contained within those resources to address this issue. It is argued that this principle has not been adequately justified and that there are other solutions to the issue of biopiracy, based on different theories of justice, that deserve greater consideration. These alternatives include the common heritage of mankind principle and the global commons principle.