"A non-exhaustive look back at 2025" by the Executive Secretary of the CBD

In Rome, Parties adopted a roadmap for resource mobilization and reached agreement on the Planning, Monitoring, Reporting and Review mechanism, thus paving the way for the first global review of collective progress in the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), at COP 17 in Yerevan in 2026.

Rome also saw the launch of the Cali Fund, a mere three months after it was operationalised, making 2025 truly a defining year for our collective quest to ensure the fair and equitable sharing of benefits from the use of Digital Sequence Information on Genetic Resources. The Guide to the Cali Fund, issued in June, provides essential information that can help boost the Fund’s capitalization in 2026, building on the first contribution to the Fund in October.

 

Eight months and several bureau meetings after the Rome meetings, Parties reconvened in Panama for the twenty-seventh meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA-27). They adopted recommendations on ten key topics, including on the scientific and technical elements of the global report that will be the basis of the review of the implementation of the KMGBF next year in Yerevan.

 In addition, SBSTTA-27 adopted important recommendations on aligning the programmes of work of the Convention with the KMGBF, on potential new areas of work, and on strengthening the response to the threat of invasive alien species. The critical contribution of soil biodiversity to agriculture was also in focus as was progress in the implementation of the Convention’s new Biodiversity and Health Action Plan and expanded voluntary guidelines on design and implementation of approaches on the use of biodiversity and ecosystem services for climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. SBSTTA also discussed ways of encouraging synergies between the implementation of biodiversity, climate change and desertification policies at national level (more on such synergistic approaches below), deliberated on the risk assessment and risk management of living modified organisms, and  successfully piloted some key approaches for improving the effectiveness of processes under the Convention, some of which have been adopted for the upcoming SBI-6.

In the margins of SBSTTA-27, we were happy to benefit from the strong engagement of our IPBES colleagues and lead authors of their seminal nexus and transformative change assessments. A two-day seminar provided the opportunity to Parties to discuss their findings and what they may mean for national policy making. And there was a moment of buzzy celebration as we marked the International Pollinators Initiative’s 25th anniversary.

 Immediately after SBSTTA-27, also in Panama, was the inaugural meeting of the Convention’s new Subsidiary Body on Article  8(j) and Other Provisions of the Convention Related to Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (SB8j-1),  marking a new chapter in the Convention’s history. This first meeting of SB8(j) was a truly special moment. In the words of Irene Vélez Torres (Colombia), COP President and Co-Chair of the inaugural meeting of SB8(j), this was “an unprecedented step toward greater environmental democracy within the United Nations”. Adopting six recommendations and holding an in-depth dialogue on resource mobilization and access to finance for indigenous peoples and local communities, the meeting took us closer to giving SB8(j) everything it needs to adequately elevate and protect the role and contributions of the custodians of a sizeable portion of the planet’s biodiversity in the work of the Convention.

 Striking the right balance between maintaining the principle of a Party-led process and the full and effective participation of indigenous peoples and local communities proved challenging, meaning that, in the run-up to and at COP17, more discussions will be needed so that the Subsidiary Body’s Modus Operandi can be adopted. More discussions will also be needed on the proposed guidelines in relation to protecting the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities in the implementation of the KMGBF’s restoration and conservation targets (Targets 2 and 3) and on how to recognize traditional lands and resource use in spatial planning processes and environmental impact assessments.

Throughout the year, culminating at UNEA-7,  just a few days ago, there were lively discussions on synergies. Symbiosis among MEAs was seen as a must for increased policy impact. The launch of the Rio Conventions website, the joint contribution to the GEF-9 replenishment by the Liaison Group of Biodiversity-related Conventions, and the CBD SBSTTA-27 discussions in Panama City, followed by the UNFCCC COP 30 in Belém, contributed to building that momentum. At SBSTTA, Parties recommended strengthening cooperation with the other two Rio Conventions, UNFCCC and UNCCD, including by strengthening the Joint Liaison Group and working together with the Secretariats and the current and incoming COP Presidencies of all three Rio Conventions towards the development of a multilevel roadmap with short-, medium-, and long-term actions, for discussion at COP 17.

 On the sidelines of COP 30, the current and incoming Presidencies of the Rio Conventions issued a joint statement recognizing the interconnected nature of biodiversity loss, climate change, and land degradation and drought, and affirming the imperative of complementary approaches towards implementing the goals and targets of the three Conventions.

 The upcoming entry into force of the BBNJ Agreement, which reached enough ratifications earlier this year in September, provided an opportunity to reflect on synergy and areas of confluence between the CBD and this landmark treaty.

Cognizant of the importance of their role in bringing about the transformative change the world needs, we sought new ways of engaging with businesses and financial institutions around the world in 2025, including at the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, meetings of the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action, City Week 2025, Climate Week NYC 2025, and at the Finance for Biodiversity Summit 2025. In a major collective step forward, ISO launched the new Biodiversity Standard (ISO 17298:2025) — a significant milestone for business engagement in biodiversity action.

 Given the size of the finance gap, innovative approaches are needed. A very encouraging development—which we welcomed as a trailblazing financial innovation showing how finance can thrive in harmony with nature—came from the heart of the Brazilian Amazon with the launch of the Tropical Forests Forever Facility in the margins of UNFCCC COP 30.

Listing every important happening would be a challenge, but the Secretariat would like to express our heartfelt gratitude for the extraordinary engagement from Parties and members of the public in the context of the celebration of the International Day for Biological Diversity 2025, which examined how action on biodiversity underpins the SDGs.

 Beating the drum for the KMGBF implementation beyond “Biodiversity Day,” the Secretariat engaged in many of the year’s defining meetings, from the United Nations General Assembly and the IUCN World Conservation Congress to Conferences of the Parties to the Ramsar, BRS, Minamata, CITES and Climate Conventions, and regional ministerial forums as well as high-level environmental gatherings in Africa, Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean. We conveyed a message of urgency to act for biodiversity to the first Africa Biodiversity Summit and to Summits of the G7 in Canada and the G20 in South Africa.

 Around the world, it has been heartening to see the strong commitment from youth, women, cities, and other stakeholder groups to accelerating the tempo of implementation of the KMGBF, demonstrating the whole-of-society approach that the world needs for its full implementation. Actions showcasing the importance of biodiversity and what can be done to halt and reverse its loss were plentiful, with Cali Biodiversity Week, happening one year after COP 16, serving as an outstanding example.

 Commitments from actors other than national governments will be a crucial contribution to strengthening the implementation of the KMGBF. In October, we issued this notification enabling them to submit such commitments through the CBD Online Reporting Tool.
 

This year, biosafety was an area where important progress was made, despite difficult discussions at SBSTTA-27. Strengthening collective commitment to the detection and identification of living modified organisms and highlighting the role of customs officials in implementing the Cartagena Protocol were among the areas the Secretariat focused on. The publication of the COP-MOP 11 Booklet and of the Technical series issue 7 took us all a little closer to fulfilling the vision of a biosafe world. 

The Convention’s Technical and Scientific Cooperation Mechanism is crucial for facilitating and increasing Parties’ access to relevant information, tools, advice, technical support and additional resources. Since COP16 welcomed the selection of 18 organisations around the globe to serve as the Convention’s subregional technical and scientific cooperation support centres (TSCCs) and mandated the Secretariat to host and operationalise the Global Coordination Entity, we have worked hard to bring this novel and promising mechanism to life. Bolstered by the strong response, commitment and enthusiasm of the designated centres, we concluded eight host agreements and are looking forward to the first biennial workplans of the TSCCs. We are also looking forward to the workshop of all the TSCCs to be held in Montreal in mid-January 2026 (as well as to building some snow(wo)men).

We also organized nine regional and sub-regional dialogues on NBSAPs and national reporting throughout 2025 to support Parties in accelerating the implementation of the 23 action targets and accounting for their work.