UN biodiversity conference (COP16)

The 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16) took place from 21 October to 1 November 2024 in Cali, Colombia, and will resume from 25-27 February 2025 in Rome, Italy to finalise key negotiations left unresolved in Cali.  

In Cali, IIED researchers and partners led discussions and participated in panels on a variety of topics ranging from biodiversity credits (biocredits) and sustainable wildlife management, to Indigenous Peoples and local communities-led conservation, among other issues. We had several official side events accepted into the COP programme, and supported partners in their discussions and joined pavilion events.

The resumption at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization headquarters in Rome will see Parties seeking consensus on unfinished agenda items from Cali, including resource mobilisation, financial mechanism and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework monitoring framework. IIED will be attending to support equitable outcomes on biodiversity finance and the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

What is the Convention on Biological Diversity?

The CBD opened for signature in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. An international treaty for the conservation of biodiversity, the sustainable use of the components of biodiversity and the equitable sharing of the benefits derived from the use of genetic resources, it entered into force in December 1993. With 196 Parties, the CBD has near universal participation among countries.

The meetings of the Parties to the convention are known as Conferences of the Parties (COP), with the first one (COP1) held in Nassau, Bahamas, in 1994. 

• Read more about our previous activities at the CBD COP conference: IIED at COP15 in Montreal, Canada (7-19 December 2022)