Conference Agenda

The presentation aims to identify the nature-positive oriented interplay between the GBF, the EU Biodiversity Strategy and the EU’s conservation laws, particularly the EU-Habitats Directive (HD) and the new EU Restoration Regulation. It will first comparatively show the timeline of the GBF-history and the EU Biodiversity Strategy to provide an indication for the progressive political nature of latter. Then it will outline already existing formulations of the HD and their implementation which allow for nature positive perspectives. Furthermore, it will also provide the results of an ongoing assessment whether the EU-Restoration law has the potential to contribute – beyond the existing restoration duties of the HD – to nature-positive outcomes of the current EU’s nature conservation laws (particularly the HD but also the EU’s Birds Directive). The presentation will finally summarize the main results of the assessment with an EU-outlook for the political 2030 and 2050 goals indicated in the GBF and the EU-Biodiversity Strategy. It will conclude with main perspectives and pitfalls as well as novel approaches for potential future nature-positive legal achievement based on the recent policies and laws (GBF, the EU-Biodiversity Strategy and the EU Restoration Regulation) as well as existing EU legal instruments (HD and Birds Directive).

In December 2022, Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity adopted a new set of global goals that have been in the making since 2019. The objective of the long-time-coming Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework is living in harmony with nature by 2050. The roadmap to do so is clustered into four sections: Protecting and restoring biodiversity, sustainably managing biodiversity resources, fair and equitable sharing of benefits and financing the implementation through capacity building, and technology transfer.

Science utilises biodiversity with the aim of generating data. Not only natural sciences but social sciences also make use of biodiversity-based research as well as knowledge over biological resources such as indigenous and traditional knowledge. This presentation will explore the forms science can contribute to the succession of the Global Biodiversity Framework by examining the pathways and obligations prescribed to Parties and relevant stakeholders such as collections and academia. The presentation will provide examples of work undertaken with the aim of conducting responsive and responsible research while contributing to the goals of the Global Biodiversity Framework.

The EU is facing a biodiversity crisis. Only 15 per cent of natural habitats and approximately 27% of species in the EU a good conservation status compared with 63% of species and 81% of habitats having poor or bad conservation status. The Birds and Habitats Directives have greatly assisted in halting the loss of biodiversity in the EU, not least by establishing the Natura 2000 network of protected areas across the EU. Implementation of the directives by itself however is not sufficient to achieve the EU’s objective of legally protecting at least 30% of the EU’s land and sea area by 2030 or its vision of living in harmony with nature by 2050.

In June 2022, to assist in achieving the above objectives, the European Commission proposed a Regulation on nature restoration to restore degraded ecosystems, habitats and species across the EU. In November 2023, the European Parliament and the Council agreed a provisional text of the regulation, albeit watered down from the original proposal by the European Commission.

This presentation will examine measures taken by the EU to halt the loss of biodiversity in the EU.

Biodiversity is deteriorating at an unprecedented scale. It is well understood that species and ecosystems exist in a delicate balance, with losses producing rippling impacts towards species’ population resilience, genetic diversity, and cultures. In recognition of the growing pressures facing biodiversity, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) was adopted in December 2022 at the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Underpinning this Framework are eighteen collective considerations that are intended to guide implementation. This presentation provides a platform to scrutinize the Consideration's contributions to biodiversity conservation planning and practice; and highlights the challenges arising from juxtaposing values and approaches surrounding human-nature dualisms and the value of biodiversity. Whilst the global community is becoming attentive to diverse worldviews, power and participatory inequalities continue to threaten biodiversity and stall meaningful progress. With so little time to meet the 2030 milestone of transforming conservation approaches and curbing environmental and biodiversity decline, I will discuss how a greater emphasis on the more progressive and holistic elements within the Considerations can help alleviate potential ambiguities within the Framework and encourage a shift in the way nature is valued within biodiversity governance and practice.

Biodiversity is rising rapidly on the corporate agenda, prompting businesses to adopt the 'Nature Positive' framing, expressing a commitment to combatting biodiversity loss and actively contributing to global nature recovery goals. However, realising these ambitions requires transformative changes in business operations, with large uncertainties currently existing around possible strategies and pathways.

I will first introduce a conceptual model for ‘Nature Positive’ ambitions for organisations that extend beyond individual company actions, encompassing driving processes influencing private sector involvement, a spectrum of potential sectoral strategies, and the need for measurement of impact at various scales. We use this model to develop high-priority research questions where answers are urgently needed to guide effective, feasible and equitable action by businesses to protect and restore nature.

I will then outline some of our current work trying to address some of these research gaps. For example, what are the opportunities and limitations of different approaches for measuring the biodiversity impacts of businesses entire value chains, and understanding possible strategies that could mitigate impacts.