State of Global Biodiversity Policy – challenges, progress and hope in a time of uncertainty
Over recent decades, an extensive architecture of international biodiversity agreements has emerged. Yet, despite this proliferation of policy frameworks, assessment after assessment confirms that biodiversity loss continues at an alarming pace. With up to one million species at risk, questions are increasingly raised about whether the global biodiversity policy system is fit for purpose, or whether it risks losing relevance in an era of accelerating environmental decline, persistent implementation and financing gaps, and growing geopolitical tensions. Drawing on three decades of experience at the heart of international biodiversity policy, Martha will reflect on where we stand, how the international policy landscape has evolved through critical shifts, and what recent developments—such as the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the BBNJ/high seas treaty—signal for the future of effective and equitable biodiversity conservation.
Speaker bio:
Martha Rojas Urrego is currently the Executive Secretary of the International Whaling Commission and served as Secretary-General of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, leading the Secretariats of these two biodiversity-related conventions, with 87 and 172 Contracting Governments respectively. Before that, she was Deputy-Secretary General a.i and Head of Global Advocacy at CARE International, one of the largest international humanitarian organizations, and as Head of Global Policy at IUCN, where she led its international biodiversity and sustainable development policy work. Prior to her international career, she was Director-General of National Parks and negotiator of Colombia in several multilateral environmental agreements and worked in on-the-ground conservation with governmental and non-governmental organizations. She is currently a member of WEF’s Friends of Ocean Action and a Commissioner of the Global Commission on the Economics of Water.
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