At the UN summit, delegates agreed to allow indigenous groups to have their say on conservation decisions

CALI, Colombia — After two weeks of negotiations, delegates agreed Saturday at a United Nations biodiversity conference to create a subsidiary body that would include indigenous peoples in future conservation decisions, a development that builds on a growing movement to recognize the role of descendants of indigenous people in some regions in protecting land and combating climate change.

Delegates also agreed to oblige large corporations to share the financial benefits of research when using natural genetic resources.

Indigenous delegations burst into applause and tears after the historic decision to create a subsidiary body was announced. “It recognizes and protects the traditional knowledge systems of indigenous peoples and local communities for the benefit of global and national biodiversity management,” said Sushil Raj, executive director of the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Global Rights and Communities Program.

“This strengthens representation, coordination, inclusive decision-making and creates space for dialogue with the parties to the COP,” Raj told The Associated Press, referring to the meeting’s official name, the Conference of the Parties.

Negotiators struggled to find common ground on some key issues last week but reached a consensus after negotiations dragged on into Friday.

The COP16 summit, held in Cali, Colombia, followed a landmark 2022 agreement in Montreal that included 23 measures to save Earth’s plant and animal life, including protecting 30 percent of the planet and 30 percent of degraded ecosystems by 2030.

Cali has also taken steps to recognize the importance of the role of people of African descent in protecting nature.

According to the final document, which was reviewed by the AP, the indigenous peoples’ body will be formed by two co-chairs chosen by the COP: one appointed by the UN parties to the regional group, and the other by representatives of indigenous peoples and local communities. .

At least one of the co-chairs will be selected from a developing country, taking into account gender balance, the document says.

“This decision recognizes the value of the traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples, Afro-descendents and local communities, and also repays 26 years of historical debt under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD),” Susana Muhamad, Colombian representative. Minister of Environment and President of COP16, published on social media platform X shortly after the announcement.

Who owns nature’s DNA was one of the most contentious topics discussed at the summit, as tensions between poorer and developed countries soared over digital sequence information of genetic resources.

However, on Saturday morning, negotiators agreed to oblige large companies to share benefits from the use of animal, plant or microorganism resources in biotechnology.

“Many of the life-saving medicines we use today come from the rainforests. It is therefore right that part of the revenue that companies receive from this information goes back to protecting nature,” said Toerris Jäger, Executive Director of the Rainforest Foundation Norway. “This is the highlight of COP16.”

The delegations agreed on a fee for genetic information of 0.1 percent of companies’ revenues from products derived from such information. The money will go into a new fund, 50 per cent of which will go to Indigenous communities.

“This will allow these communities, including women and youth, to finally share in the benefits,” said Ginette Hemley, senior vice president for wildlife at the World Wildlife Fund.

An agreement was also adopted to protect human health from the growing challenges to the Earth’s biodiversity. Ecosystem degradation and loss of ecological integrity directly threaten the health of people and animals, environmental groups say.

Many argued that the conference as a whole fell short of expectations, especially when it came to financial commitments.

The pledges made by countries over the course of two weeks fell far short of the billions needed to address the sharp decline in global biodiversity. Only US$163 million in new commitments were announced at COP16.

“The promises made… were far from what they should be,” said Nicola Sorsby, a researcher at the International Institute for Environment and Development. “This is just 0.5 percent of the target we need to achieve over the next six years.”

Modest promises do not bode well for the next UN climate talks, COP29, to be held in Azerbaijan later this month. The focus of COP29 is expected to be on how to raise the trillions of dollars needed to transition the world to clean energy sources such as solar, wind and geothermal energy. Raising this money will require major commitments from countries, companies and charities.

“Unfortunately, too many countries and UN officials came to Cali without the urgency and level of ambition needed to deliver results at COP16 to address our species’ most pressing existential challenge,” said Brian O’Donnell, director of the Campaign for Nature.

At the Montreal Biodiversity Summit, rich countries pledged to raise $20 billion a year in environmental finance for developing countries by 2025, rising to $30 billion a year by 2030.

The world’s wildlife populations have declined by an average of 73 percent over 50 years, according to the biennial Living Planet report by the World Wildlife Fund and the Zoological Society of London.