A UN nature deal proposed Sunday calls to protect at least 30 percent of the planet by 2030 and asks rich countries to stump up $30 billion in yearly aid for developing nations to save their ecosystems.
A UN nature deal proposed Sunday calls to protect at least 30 percent of the planet by 2030 and asks rich countries to stump up $30 billion in yearly aid for developing nations to save their ecosystems.
Fraught talks seeking an agreement to save the species and ecosystems on which life depends came to a head as summit chair China presented a long-awaited compromise text.
Mapping out action for the next decade to reverse destruction that scientists say threatens a million species, the proposal called on wealthy countries to increase financial aid to the developing world to $20 billion annually by 2025, rising to $30 billion per year by 2030.
It also called on countries to « ensure and enable that by 2030 at least 30 percent of terrestrial, inland water, and coastal and marine areas » are effectively conserved and managed.
The text includes language safeguarding the rights of Indigenous people as stewards of their lands, a key demand of campaigners.
The compromise text was largely welcomed by conservationists, but still needs to be agreed upon by the 196 signatories to the Convention on Biological Diversity before it is finalized.
Risk of pushback
Opening the talks in Montreal, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned humanity had become a « weapon of mass extinction » and called on parties to forge a « peace pact with nature.
