What's happening at COP15 and why it matters

We're pushing for a people-centred approach to reversing biodiversity loss

An estimated 1.87 billion people live in important biodiversity conservation areas and rely on the local biodiversity for their livelihood and wellbeing.

This year, the Global Diversity Framework - considered the “Paris Agreement for Nature” - is on the table, where governments will agree on a number of targets aimed at halting and reversing biodiversity loss.

The question is, will COP15 bring forward solutions that include people who live on and from the land?

COP15 is meant to help bring biodiversity loss under control.

Yet many of the solutions - as currently presented - are leaving out a major part of the equation; the people who live on and from the land.

Conservation efforts that infringe on the human rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities, including pastoralists and small-scale farmers, are certain to fail. Their way of living and the land they keep is the solution itself.

Regognise their rights and the planet will thrive.

Nature with people.

We know one of the biggest threats to biodiversity is changes to land use and the exploitation of natural resources.

Research has found that when people have secure rights to their land and territories they are empowered to make climate smart decisions and incentives to invest in sustainable land management practices.

For nature with people to work, human rights language needs to be integrated into each relevant target (1, 2, 3, 10, 21, 22) and not treated as a cross-cutting issue.