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From:
Amir Kassam <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Amir Kassam <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 24 Mar 2022 20:59:54 +0000
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*Global CA-CoP* *CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE COMMUNITY OF*

*for sustainable agriculture, land use and ecosystem management*

Dear Subscribers,

Please see herebelow a message from David Duthi of Bioplan regarding the
Geneva Biodiversity Conference.

Apologies for any cross-posting.

*Amir Kassam *

*Moderator*

*Global CA-CoP*

e-mail: [log in to unmask]

URL: http://www.fao.org/conservation-agriculture

URL: http://www.act-africa.org/

URL: https://ecaf.org/
URL: http://www.caa-ap.org/

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: David Duthie <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Thu, 24 Mar 2022 at 18:28
Subject: Geneva Biodiversity Conference (Week 1)
To: bioplan <[log in to unmask]>


Dear BIOPLANNERS,


The Geneva Biodiversity Conference, comprising the meetings of the
Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice and the
Subsidiary Body on Implementation as well as the Open-ended Working Group
on the post-2020 global biodiversity framework is taking place from 14th-29
th March 2022.


As usual, the Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) is covering the event with
daily reports and highlights – see
https://enb.iisd.org/cbd-sbstta24-sbi3-global-biodiversity-framework
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fenb.iisd.org%2Fcbd-sbstta24-sbi3-global-biodiversity-framework&data=04%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7C99cbb03a2bd843e2fbda08da0ceed03f%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637836517081556587%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&sdata=ceFUCHOuvBFiEj4xd%2BQZv6vVs6m0TF3Q%2FkGldahhEgk%3D&reserved=0>
.


Those who wish to follow the negotiations which are partly in person and
also online, can do so via the SCBD live-streaming channel – see here
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fplaylist%3Flist%3DPLjpSs1uejVAmgeBVIMoiVie6geTGdv1F5&data=04%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7C99cbb03a2bd843e2fbda08da0ceed03f%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637836517081556587%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&sdata=VdeRTkLEdfSJ0UfPmHOrurwuJdTJW11VTxE8saKXRac%3D&reserved=0>
.


I shall restrict myself to just providing the extremely useful ENB Final
Analysis here after the conference has concluded but, as the meeting is so
long and complex, I am providing a “flavour” of the progress so far via a
compilation of the daily ENB “In the Corridors” observations for the first
6 days (see below), and will do the same again at the end of each week, as
a kind of barometer of progress which, at the end of the first week, seems
to be too slow.


As the scale and speed of the biodiversity crisis continue to grow, the
CBD, with its limited (legal) power is in danger of being overwhelmed by
the magnitude and complexities of the issues it is trying to address -
unless more progress can be made and more consensus can be found next week.


Best wishes


David Duthie

 ****************

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****************

*Earth Negotiations Bulletin*


*In the Corridors (Monday)*


Has it been forever, or has no time at all passed? The halls of the
International Conference Center in Geneva were abuzz on Monday as delegates
could—for the first time in almost exactly two years—share hearty
handshakes, or giggly elbow bumps. There was no mistaking the atmosphere
among those gathered that, no matter the miracles of technology, it’s good
to be back in person.

Still, the spectre of the upcoming COP, and the incredible amount of work
to do until then, lingered. “We are starting a countdown,” WG2020 Co-Chair
Francis Ogwal reminded those assembled in plenary. As if the schedule was
not pressure enough: three bodies meeting in two weeks, with daily
extensions into the late hours, had some participants bracing for some long
nights—and others wondering just how much can be done when everything is
being squeezed into such a narrow window.


A few seasoned delegates agreed that the mood does not promise leaps and
bounds of progress: “The real decisions will come down to the last night of
the COP, as always,” one quipped. How much gets done before then will
determine just how late that night goes—and most likely how successful it
will be.
In the Corridors (Tuesday)

Maybe it was jet lag; maybe it was the haze that delegates woke up to in
Geneva, the clouds turned yellow by sand blown over from the Sahara.
Whatever the reason, the excitement that bubbled up on Monday had fizzled
for some by Tuesday. Discreet conversations with delegates revealed a worry
that, already, discussions were getting lost in the details. “I’m
exhausted, and it’s only day two—I can’t imagine how it will feel at the
end of the meeting,” one languished. For many, “hopeful” isn’t yet the
appropriate word.

But two weeks is a long time—to be lost, or to find new energy. Out in the
hallways, delegates smiled as they spoke of the children for whom they wish
to preserve and build a better world. Others shared stories of birdwatching
habits in their time at home, agreeing that the chance to get back to
nature was worth any excuse. If that spirit pierces through the clouds,
there may be solid results yet for the Geneva Biodiversity Conference.

*In the Corridors (Wednesday)*


Fungi, those undersung heroes of the natural world, often form kilometres
of complex tendrils in soil before fruiting into mushrooms. Similarly, the
mood among some delegates on Wednesday seemed downright mycelial: “we’re
going so deep into the weeds,” one said after the morning, “that it’s hard
to keep track of what the bigger picture is.” They might have been inspired
by the work in plenary, which just barely managed to finish considering its
targets after diving deep into minute textual changes.


Some much-needed encouragement came in the afternoon, when one contact
group not only completed its work, but did so with an hour to spare. One
commentator was insistent: “We have to keep working at that kind of clip,
because this is the small stuff. Otherwise, how will we make progress when
things get intense in a few days’ time?” The good that may mushroom from
present discussion will likely depend on delegates’ capacity to know when
to let go—and when, like fungi, to dig in.
In the Corridors (Thursday)

The make-or-break moment that the Geneva Biodiversity Conference was
projected to be is evolving to be a break moment for most. Parties
exhibited clear signs of disillusion on making measurable progress. Fatigue
was evident during the morning’s deliberations; some delegates expressed
frustration regarding guidance for negotiations that asked yes or no
questions and used traffic light signals to measure views on different
issues. Demands to enter the “real negotiating mode” by some may have been
as an eagerness to begin negotiations under less stressful circumstances.
In the case of many, though, it became an omen of apprehension in the face
of overwhelming number of meetings from dawn to dusk.

While co-leads and co-chairs urged parties to exercise patience as initial
views are consolidated into negotiating text, tensions resurfaced in the
afternoon and evening, and delegates complained about being muzzled,
detracted, or slowed down. “It will be hard to maintain a positive spirit
until the end,” one noted, pointing to the marathon of contact group
meetings still ahead.

Another, even more pessimistic, opined that “as we get increasingly tired
and irritated, it will be impossible to reach consensus on the most
controversial items,” pointing to the forthcoming discussions on digital
sequence information. Even though many acknowledged that they had expected
a challenging meeting, many expected the first week to yield more than it
has.

“We wanted a racehorse,” one delegate said, “but in terms of work, the GBF
is becoming a mammoth.” Hopefully, unlike the now-extinct elephantid, the
GBF will survive the pressures and be ushered intact into the second week
of talks.
In the Corridors (Friday)

Delegates have gritted their teeth and held on. Four days in, though, a
tenuous contact group meeting may have been the straw that breaks the
camel’s back. After a discussion on milestones came to loggerheads, talk
about yet another group on goals brought out open exasperation in the
plenary hall.

“We’ve been doing this for days without enough time to read texts—I haven’t
even eaten lunch today,” hammered one delegate as the contact group went
into overtime. Others complained about rapidly changing schedules,
inconsistent texts, and the perennial problem of parallel talks: trying to
establish indicators on targets that do not yet exist.

“Honestly, this meeting is brutal—three weeks is longer than a COP,” echoed
another delegate. Despite their initial energy, some self-admittedly naïve
delegates who were initially looking forward to a Sunday hiking on the
Salève are openly yearning for time to nap and do some laundry.

GBF Co-Chairs encouraged delegates not to throw out the baby with the
bathwater. They reminded the room of the billions of people—the young, the
old, the vulnerable—whom delegates collectively represent. Everyone is
exhausted, but is saving even a little of what is left to save not worth
the lost sleep and deferred meals? Some delegates pledged “herculean
efforts.”

Whatever position delegates may hold, what’s certain is that the sole day
off in the Geneva Conference cannot come soon enough.
In the Corridors (Saturday)

Some wines don’t get better as they age. Four years of consultations and a
week of the Geneva Biodiversity Conference finally brought a sliver of true
negotiations on Saturday, on GBF targets. But considering that the SBSTTA
plenary barely got through one of four preliminary documents, observers
could be forgiven for wondering: what, if anything, have the past six days
accomplished other than hours of statements and little negotiation?

There are those who remind delegates of the immense work done so far, and
urge them not to waste it. But others could barely contain their
frustration:

“Six days just to hear the same statements we’ve been repeating since
2019,” quipped an anonymous participant. “The more we change things, the
more we are reverting to the original.”  “Everyone knows we’re nowhere, and
everyone knows we haven’t even touched the complicated stuff,” said one
resigned delegate. “Next week is everything we’ve been putting off—DSI,
means of implementation, targets on resource mobilization.” Delegates are
under serious pressure to deliver a framework draft for the COP, if only
because “no one can afford another working group meeting—literally, for
some.”

It will all come down to the last week, and the last plenaries, then. If
parties are waiting until their back is to the wall before making tough
concessions, one weathered insider warned, it will be a long final night.
And every roadblock here lengthens the path to success in Kunming. No-one
can predict the outcome, yet everyone knows we must change our *modus
operandi* in the weeks ahead. One thing for sure is that everyone deserves
a good break away from it all and to pause and exhale all the suppressed
emotions. For when comes Monday, one said, we shall press fast forward
after the pause.

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