Climate Change and Biodiversity Synergies: A Scientometric Analysis in the Context of UNFCCC and CBD

Abstract

Two major multilateral environmental agreements–the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)–were negotiated in 1992 to tackle the global crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. However, the interlinkages between these two concerns were less recognized and structured which impaired the development of streamlined policies to tackle both simultaneously. Over the last nearly 20 years, increased scientific output on their interlinkages seems to have galvanized the world towards synergistic approaches aimed at transformation instead of business-as-usual effort. The Paris Climate Agreement to the UNFCCC characterizes this synergy by recognizing the importance of conservation and biodiversity protection and ensuring the integrity of all ecosystems. To understand to what extent, scientific output helped reach such synergistic decisions, we studied the temporal distribution of publications on the interlinkages between climate and biodiversity, vis-à-vis important decisions and approaches recognized by the UNFCCC and CBD. The research is based on scientometric meta-analysis of publications, assessing the trends, geographic distribution, key authors, journals, and funding organizations from 1992 to 2021. This information is simultaneously mapped for its significance for major decisions of the two conventions. The later part of the paper sheds light on the science-policy interface by taking cues from outputs of this research and recent workshops and meetings on climate- and biodiversity-related topics.