I HAVE TO admit, I was a bit of a COP cynic as I headed to my first COP in Cali, Colombia in mid-October. This was the COP16 Biodiversity Summit as opposed to next week’s Cop, the UN Climate Change Conference in Baku. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) COP meets every two years with the global goal of halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030.

Some say that COPs are just a talking shop — lots of countries coming together to agree on targets that no one has any intention of keeping. It can be difficult to believe that real change is possible globally when there are worrying reports this week, such as the prediction that this year will be the hottest on record, and the return of Trump in the US, a noted climate change denier. But if we don’t try at all, then nothing happens and nature suffers even more.

I spent almost two weeks in Colombia at the Biodiversity COP, so what did I learn and was I any more convinced by the experience?

Well first, in comparison with the better-known COPs on climate change that take place every year in places like Paris, Glasgow and more recently in the UAE, this COP was about nature and biodiversity. 

It’s sometimes hard to believe that nature is in free fall when you’re living in Ireland, surrounded by greenery everywhere. But then you think, when was the last time I saw a butterfly or why don’t I have to scrape the insects off my windscreen anymore when I’m driving cross country? You start to pick up on the tell-tale signs of biodiversity loss.  
 
Still, for those of us in business rather than ecology, you might think what has this got to do with me? The news headlines about the horrific floods in Spain over the past few weeks are bringing discussions closer to home for many. We find ourselves asking could that happen here? The answer is that it already does, of course, with coastal flooding identified as a serious and increasing threat for Ireland.

Paiporta, Valencia. 08th Nov, 2024. November 7, 2024, Paiporta, Valencia, España: Paiporta, Day 9 aftermath floods in Valencia. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

While we haven’t experienced the catastrophic loss of life suffered in Valencia, we should not underestimate the devastating longer-term impacts. Long after the headlines images of floods and rivers bursting their banks fade from our screens, thousands of farms and small businesses across Ireland struggle to pick up the pieces and recover their livelihoods reeling from the huge losses incurred. 

Can we effect change?

So how is COP going to change any of this and what is the link between climate change and nature loss? I took home three key messages from COP16:  

The first was about the relationship between climate change and nature. Essentially, nature holds a potent solution for climate change. So-called nature-based solutions like forests and peatlands have been around for centuries and have been quietly keeping the world in check, soaking up carbon, reducing temperatures and guzzling up heavy rainfalls without anyone paying much attention.

Scientists have calculated that nature-based solutions, when done right, have the capacity to significantly reduce global warming while creating many benefits for communities and local economies. Cut down the forests, cover our cities with concrete, and the message from COP is that we’re essentially destroying our own resilience to climate change in an act of self-destruction. 

Colombia's Minister of Environment Susana Muhamad gives a speech during the opening ceremony of COP16, Oct. 20, 2024. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

The second key message I took home from COP was that investment in nature is creating many new opportunities. Indeed, there were more businesses and investors at this COP than at any previous event. Why? Well, the World Economic Forum calculated that over half of global GDP is moderately or highly dependent on nature and that 395 million jobs could be delivered through the transition of industry towards nature-positive by 2030.

Yet it seems most businesses are unaware of both the risks and opportunities. Studies show that only 5% of companies have carried out an assessment of the impact of their operations on nature, while fewer than 1% of companies have carried out an assessment of their dependencies on nature. This needs to change.

Oasis Terraces in Singapore, a green roof provides an urban nature-based solution to environmental challenges such as climate change. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

At COP, we heard about a lot of work happening to raise business awareness and action. This is being led by organisations such as Business for Nature, World Economic Forum (WEF) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). Closer to home, the GoNaturePositive! a project led by Trinity College Dublin is working with pilots in Ireland and Europe on the transformation of agro-food, marine, forest, building and tourism industries towards more nature-positive practices.

Examples include a shift from intensive monoculture practices to agro-ecology, agro-forestry and reforestation approaches as part of industry value chains. Right now, many industry sectors seem to be in the ‘early adopter’ phase but judging from the business and investment presence at this COP, the smart money seems to be on nature positive becoming mainstream as more and more policy and investment are piled into this space. 

People tour the green zone of the United Nations Biodiversity Conference, or COP16, in Cali, Colombia, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

The third key message I took home was about equality or, more accurately, the lack of it when it comes to nature restoration. Before going to COP, I had little knowledge of the challenges that developing countries face in trying to conserve the world’s most diverse rainforests and ecosystems.

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In developing countries, like the Pacific Islands, instead of investing in conservation, half of their national debt can be spent mopping up after climate disasters that they didn’t create. And while developed countries are keen to lend money for large-scale afforestation projects in developing countries, for landowners such loans are often less attractive than the upfront cash payments that logging companies are ready to pay for cutting down the forests that are propping up our world’s ecosystems. At COP16, investors presented opportunities for ‘bankable’ projects in the order of $5-75 million with return on investment expected in 5-7 years.

Huang Runqiu, China's minister of ecology and environment, walks onto the stage at the opening ceremony of COP16. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

This contrasts sharply with the needs of many small enterprises. In one session there was a spontaneous round of applause for a small farmer who asked, what finance is available for me to do the right thing? There were also inspiring examples of innovation, like the EcoTrust project in Uganda, which uses carbon credits as a way of incentivising more than 40,000 small farmers to come together at scale to protect and restore wildlife corridors.

A key outcome of COP was the official recognition of the role of Indigenous Peoples and people of African descent and their communities in biodiversity conservation. But while this was a win, the big disappointment from COP16 was the lack of progress on financing. The UN estimates that $700 billion is needed to achieve the goal of halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030 but so far only around $200 million has been committed. And the COP ended before progress was made on this matter, with no resolution in sight.

Will anything change?

So, coming home from COP, am I less cynical? Well not really. While I’m optimistic about the opportunities that a transition to a nature-positive economy might present in theory, I’m concerned about the unequal distribution of benefits from such a transition. But what is the alternative to COP? It is the only game in town. It is the only forum where all countries come together to find solutions and from this policies and business decisions will follow.

I gained a new appreciation in Cali for the government negotiators who prepare for months for these COPs and who work tireless day and night at COP to reach consensus. While an agreement might not have been reached at this COP, these negotiators will keep trying. And that is always better than doing nothing. Without them we would literally be sailing down the flooding creek to disaster without the paddle that these COPs provide.
 
A final reflection. As Ireland will hold the Presidency of the EU in 2026 when the next COP on biodiversity is hosted closer to home in Armenia, we should reflect on how we can demonstrate leadership – not just for our own gain, but to build on our deep sense of humanity and justice to bring about equitable solutions for developing countries in recognition of the service they are providing to save our shared planet. 

Dr Siobhan McQuaid is the Associate Director of Innovation at Trinity College Dublin’s Centre for Social Innovation. She leads research on the nature-positive economy and nature-based entrepreneurship. She is the founder and director of Horizon Nua, a non-profit foundation supporting people, cities/regions, and entrepreneurs to transition towards a just, carbon-neutral, nature-positive economy.