Biodiversity is fundamental to human well-being, planetary health, and economic prosperity around the world. Yet, it is facing an unprecedented crisis: nearly one million species are at risk of extinction. The current extinction rate is already tens to hundreds of times greater than the average over the past ten million years—and this rate is accelerating.
In response to this urgent situation, the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework was adopted on December 19, 2022, during the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. This landmark agreement aims to halt the alarming loss of biodiversity and drive global efforts to restore nature.
The Framework includes four long-term goals to achieve the 2050 Vision for Biodiversity, alongside twenty-three specific global targets set for achievement by 2030. These ambitious targets are grouped under three key themes: (1) reducing threats to biodiversity (Targets 1-8); (2) meeting people’s needs through sustainable use and equitable benefit sharing (Targets 9-13); and (3) tools and solutions for implementation and mainstreaming (Targets 14-23).
Here is the TARGET 22:
“Ensure the full, equitable, inclusive, effective and gender-responsive representation and participation in decisionmaking, and access to justice and information related to biodiversity by indigenous peoples and local communities, respecting their cultures and their rights over lands, territories, resources, and traditional knowledge, as well as by women and girls, children and youth, and persons with disabilities and ensure the full protection of environmental human rights defenders.”
Target 22 is a significant component of the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, as it recognises that the active involvement of all stakeholders is essential to achieving lasting conservation outcomes. By calling for full, equitable, inclusive, effective, and gender-responsive participation, the target emphasises the importance of diverse voices in biodiversity-related decision-making. This includes not only indigenous peoples and local communities—who are often the stewards of some of the world’s most biodiversity-rich areas—but also women, girls, children, youth, and persons with disabilities, all of whom have historically been underrepresented or marginalised in such processes.
Ensuring access to justice and information related to biodiversity is another critical element of Target 22. Access to information empowers communities to make informed decisions, hold authorities accountable, and defend their environmental rights. Meanwhile, access to justice ensures that when rights are violated or environmental harm occurs, affected parties have avenues for redress. Both aspects are vital for upholding the rights, cultures, and traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples and local communities, whose contributions to biodiversity conservation are widely recognised.
Furthermore, Target 22 underscores the necessity of respecting land, territory, and resource rights, as well as traditional knowledge. Such respect is not only a matter of justice but also a pragmatic requirement, as indigenous and local community-managed lands have been shown to harbour higher levels of biodiversity and healthier ecosystems compared to many other areas.
The explicit mention of the protection of environmental human rights defenders reflects growing concerns over threats faced by individuals and groups advocating for the environment. Around the world, these defenders often face intimidation, violence, or legal challenges. By including their protection in the Framework, the international community sends a clear message about the value of their work and the need for a safe and enabling environment for advocacy and activism.
In summary, Target 22 affirms that biodiversity conservation is not only an ecological or scientific endeavour, but also a social and ethical one. By fostering inclusive participation, respecting rights, and safeguarding defenders, the Framework aims to create a foundation for equitable and effective biodiversity action that leaves no one behind.
