Kunming Declaration on Biodiversity

Biodiversity protection is a crucial part of conserving our environment. It refers to adopting and formulating procedures, laws, and awareness to protect biological diversity. Several methods for biodiversity conservation have been applied over these years, including the heat of wildlife parks, biodiversity reserves, sanctuaries, and so on, to restore and protect biological diversity. Apart from these, several conventions have been done to spread awareness like the Earth Summit, COP summits etc. One of these conventions is the Kunming Declaration adopted at the UNFCCC Conference of Parties 15 (COP 15) in China. It deals with biodiversity protection.

About the Kunming Declaration

• The Kunming Declaration was adopted at UNFCCC’s 15th Conference of Parties by over 100 nation-states. 
• The Kunming Declaration is related to China’s United States Convention on biological diversity. 
• The declaration aims to accelerate the implementation process of the new global biodiversity protection agreement.

Provisions of the Kunming Declaration

• The theme of the Kunming declaration is related to Ecological Civilisation: Building a shared future for all life on Earth.
• This declaration’s objective was to formulate strategies and plans for the conservation of biotic life and the sustainable use of biodiversity. It also aims to ensure fair and equitable opportunities arising from biotic or genetic resources. 
• The declaration requires the world countries to put urgent action and implemented uses towards biodiversity protection and reflect upon the current measures. It urges the leaders to integrate biological diversity protection measures in all sectors of the economy as soon as possible. 
• The declaration implores the world leaders to consider the negative aspects of harming biodiversity and hence effective measures to include biodiversity protection measures in their decision-making process and protect biodiversity-rich areas. 
• Countries have promised that by adopting the Kunming Declaration, they will support in every manner possible the implementation of the post-2020 plan for the Cartagena Protocol on biosafety. Another major protocol is the Nagoya Protocol. 
• All the members of the Kunming Declaration have promised to formulate plans and programs for the conservation and sustainable use of our flora and fauna after the current COVID-19 pandemic.
• This agreement is not binding on the signatories of this declaration. It means that members are free to incorporate these provisions or discard them. 
• The declaration also follows the 30 by 30 target. This target was adopted in the same COP15 summit that provisions that 30% of the Earth’s biotic life have a protected status by 2030.
• This declaration not only focuses on biodiversity protection but other dynamics as well. For example, its provisions reduce the usage of chemical products in agriculture by half. Moreover, the ban on unlimited plastic usage is still debatable.

The Funding of the Kunming Declaration

The funding for the Kunming declaration is provided majorly by China. China committed to granting $233 million towards the implementation process of the Kunming Declaration provisions. The fund’s name is Kunming Declaration Fund, as given by China. Although, this action is considered “a drop in the bucket” because data shows that China is the biggest polluter of biodiversity in the world. Also, this act is getting criticism because a funding organisation exists. The United Nations Global Environment Facility is the donor to green projects that aim to protect the environment and biodiversity.

Cartagena Protocol

Cartagena protocol was adopted during the COP summit in 2000 as a supporting program for their convention on biosafety. This protocol strives to protect and conserve biological diversity and other life resources from the misuse of biotechnology measures. It considers the harm living organisms can cause to the environment when exposed to modern biotechnology methods. It provides AIA procedures for spreading knowledge to the country about such organisms before welcoming them into their region.

Nagoya Protocol

The Nagoya Protocol was a supplementary protocol to the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). This protocol aims for fair and equitable sharing of biotic resources. It has been ratified by 96 United Nations members and the European Union (EU). It aims to provide legal support for transactors of biotic resources. Furthermore, its main objective lies in providing a sustainable environment for genetic resources.

Conclusion:

Conventions like the Kunming Declaration are highly essential to sustain genetic resources, and they are a part of our planet and have equal rights to survival. Every step taken in the Kunming Declaration is related to conserving biotic life on Earth and must be taken according to development policies and decision-making processes. Besides this declaration, other summits also have agendas related to climate change and should be given equal priority. The provision of the Kunming declaration is related to biodiversity protection, and the implementation procedures of this declaration should also revolve around the same.