As countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) move into the adoption and the implementation phase of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KM-GBF), recently renamed “The Biodiversity Plan” and seek to reflect its targets into National Biodiversity Strategies and Actions Plans (NBSAPs) and sectoral plans and policies, there is a new set of challenges and issues that need to be addressed, especially on how to mainstream biodiversity throughout productive, economic and planning and finance sectors.
This has so far proved difficult, and it is important to learn from past experiences to identify how to overcome blockages and scale-up successes. Biodiversity mainstreaming has been one of the topics identified by experts from the region in different dialogues co-organized by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) as one of the main tools for implementing the GBF in which there are large knowledge gaps and it has been indicated that it is necessary to systematize good practices of concrete cases to make a strong outreach and engagement.
Multiplying and up-scaling mainstreaming best practices is one of those challenges that require an understanding of what positive implementation looks like from different perspectives— economic, social and biodiversity—not just from a biodiversity perspective. Sharing the knowledge of LAC experiences on biodiversity mainstreaming with relevant actors may help increase the knowledge-base that can support the transformation of the productive, economic and financial sectors, resulting in better conditions and enhanced political capital for transformative change.
This year, Colombia, one of the world’s most mega diverse countries, will host the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP-16) of the Convention on Biological Diversity. The meeting’s venue will be in Cali, from October 21 to November 1. As one of the main strategic topics for an effective implementation of The Biodiversity Plan, countries and stakeholders will debate at COP-16 on ways to foster mainstreaming across sectors.
Supporting LAC region to strengthen capacities for biodiversity mainstreaming.
Through the project “Strategic support for the early implementation of the Kunming-Montreal GBF in LAC Region”, ECLAC and the Post 2020 Biodiversity Framework – EU Support project, funded by the EU and implemented by Expertise France, take advantage of ECLAC’s expertise, knowledge and established infrastructure to reinforce capacities of countries and stakeholders in LAC region to better prepare for a proactive implementation of the Biodiversity Plan.
Through the development of a multi-actor and intersectoral process, considering multi-stakeholders virtual dialogues and an in-person high-level experts workshop, to obtain guide and recommendations on building a toolkit to strengthen capacities of governments, stakeholders and partners on, the project will share tools and solutions for key targets of the KM-GBF with a special focus on the mainstreaming of biodiversity.
The toolkit is planned to be launched at COP16 and will constitute a “living” online platform aimed at large-scale interactive participation and open access via the web. It will serve to share traditional course materials such as documents, videos, readings, and guidelines, providing resources that will help governments, stakeholders, experts, ECLAC and other global, regional, national and subnational relevant organizations.
