Synthetic biology, as an emerging field that integrates life sciences and engineering technology, is driving profound transformations in global science, ethics, and legal systems. In international legal framework, the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) have established initial hard law governance systems. However, these frameworks still face structural limitations in terms of technical adaptability, the scope of provisions, and institutional coordination. Soft law, with its flexibility, non-binding nature, and ability to build consensus, is increasingly becoming an essential supplement to the international response to the ethical risks of synthetic biology. International organizations, industry alliances, and non-governmental actors are constructing a multi-layered soft law governance network through ethical guidelines, policy recommendations, and codes of conduct, providing institutional support for risk identification, technology classification, and behavioral guidance. Soft law is well-suited to perform the roles of guiding and providing feedback in governance, while hard law should focus on the construction of systems of rights and responsibilities and the establishment of obligations. There is a collaborative governance model that integrates both soft and hard law. This model, characterized by “soft law guidance, hard law consolidation, and soft law feedback,” aims to create a flexible and enforceable governance framework. This approach ensures that soft law provides a timely and adaptive starting point, hard law offers a uniform and accountable foundation, and a feedback loop allows for continuous adjustment based on practical experience.

Protected areas (PAs) are primary biodiversity conservation instruments under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Despite a substantial body of research assessing their causal impact, a comprehensive global synthesis remains lacking. This study examines trends in PA effectiveness on biodiversity loss using impact evaluation studies published between 2000 and 2023. From 129 identified studies, matching emerged as the predominant method, with deforestation and forest cover as the most frequently assessed outcomes. Notably, none of the reviewed studies incorporated CBD-approved biodiversity indicators, such as the Red List Index, and only one applied the Biodiversity Intactness Index (BII) established by the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. These findings underscore the need for future research to integrate standardized biodiversity metrics as outcome variables. Methodological advancements in impact evaluation are equally essential to strengthen conservation policy assessments and support evidence-based decision-making within international biodiversity agreements.

This article reviews existing and proposed Brazilian policies aimed at promoting the conservation and sustainable use of wild and managed pollinators. Emphasis is placed on strategies for habitat conservation and restoration, as well as the reduction of stress associated with agrochemical use. The origins and development of the International Pollinators Initiative (IPI) under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Brazilian Pollinators Initiative are detailed, including their connections to pollinator and pollination assessments conducted by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) and its national counterpart, the Brazilian Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (BPBES). A summary of Brazil's current nature conservation policies, particularly the Native Vegetation Protection Law (the updated version of the Brazilian Forest Code), is provided, alongside policies that promote sustainable agriculture. The article also presents a concise review of the usage and impacts of agrochemicals in Brazil on both humans and pollinators, with a focus on bees, and discusses the prospects for biological control. The paper concludes by outlining critical areas requiring greater attention from public policies.

Abstract Marine genetic resources (MGRs) sit at the centre of emerging biotechnological innovation, yet the international legal regimes governing their access, use, and benefit-sharing remain fragmented and often contradictory. This article operationalizes Hohfeld’s relational framework to map the legal relations embedded in six core instruments that regulate MGRs: the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Nagoya Protocol, the WIPO Treaty on Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge (GRATK), and the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement. The resulting Hohfeldian mapping shows how claim-rights, obligations, powers, and other legal positions are distributed across these regimes, revealing overlapping and sometimes competing legal logics within MGR governance. This approach clarifies the relational structure of these legal positions and highlights how legal form shapes, and occasionally obscures, the exercise of authority, the creation of regulatory gaps, and the persistence of asymmetries, particularly in relation to benefit-sharing and the treatment of digital sequence information. The analysis draws on a manually curated, machine-readable dataset that serves as a resource for further research. The article places the legal governance of MGRs within wider debates on the international law of global commons and sets out a methodological scaffold for comparative and critical legal analysis. It ultimately invites a reconsideration of who owns and who owes what within the evolving governance of MGRs.

The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) sets targets for parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to achieve by 2030. One of them, target 8, is to minimise the impact of climate change on biodiversity and increase its resilience. The GBF highlights that its implementation can be more efficient and effective through enhanced collaboration, cooperation and synergies between the CBD and other relevant multilateral agreements. In line with this statement, this article highlights that the climate legal regime can contribute to achieving GBF target 8. This article uses assisted species migration (ASM), that is translocation of animals and plants to places outside their current ranges, as a mechanism for their adaptation to climate change, as an example. The article concludes that nationally determined contributions (NDCs) could be instruments for articulating ASM best practices. This is also relevant for national adaptation plans, adaptation communications, national communications, and biennial (biennial update) reports.

Youth in global environmental negotiations: The YouthEarth dataset.

Parasite conservation now: turning knowledge into action.

Representation of the world’s Indigenous Peoples’ cultural, political, environmental, and social issues continues to be marginalized within and across the seven sociocultural regions designated by the UNPFII (Africa, the Arctic, Asia, Central and South America and the Caribbean, Eastern Europe, the Russian Federation, Central Asia and Transcaucasia, North America, and the Pacific). This marginalization is characteristic of the global Indigenous political identity recognized by international law and treaties. This perspective study proposes and advocates for the right of people to have their own media, a stance informed by and grounded in field research by Indigenous policy negotiation teams at the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the UN Media Caucus Board since 2018. This study makes a case for the urgent need for Indigenous media ownership as essential to discussions of how global policy development could support this media. This includes, for example, curating specialized content provided directly by Indigenous Peoples’ newsrooms, as well as the development of special programming that links into the United Nations streaming system in parallel to negotiations through mainstream global media platforms. At present, decisive negotiations between nation-states, stakeholders, and Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities are taking place across complementary treaties, which address the case of enhancing the visibility of Indigenous Peoples through their own global media networks, a historical shift in the terms of representation between Indigenous Peoples and the rest of the world.

Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs), introduced by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), refer to areas outside formal protected-area networks that deliver effective and enduring in situ biodiversity conservation. This scoping review systematically examined global approaches to identifying and evaluating potential OECMs. Analysing 99 studies covering 694 case studies and 237 000 potential sites, we found that potential OECMs are widespread, particularly in Asia and terrestrial environments, with most initiatives led by the environmental sector. Assessments relied largely on qualitative expert knowledge, with limited application of analytical methods. Although CBD criteria were commonly applied, contributions of related to ecosystem services and socio-cultural values were often overlooked. Effectiveness evaluations showed considerable uncertainty, with over one-third of case studies reporting inadequate evidence of conservation outcomes. The review emphasises the need for standardised assessment methodologies, improved decision-support tools, and socio-cultural integration to enhance OECM recognition, particularly under the 30 × 30 conservation biodiversity target.

Broadening understanding and consideration of biodiversity across aquatic systems is critical to ensure their resilience. Globally, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) sets objectives for conservation of biodiversity and sustainable exploitation of biological resources. Nationally, the broad plan for delivery of these three aims is articulated in National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs), which contextualize globally agreed goals to local needs. Here, we use text analysis to investigate the focus of 182 national biodiversity plans that cover actions to achieve the CBD 2010–2020 framework, focussing on marine and freshwater ecosystems and their contrast with terrestrial ecosystems. The approach was validated by correlating intervention-related content measured by text analysis with corresponding interventions inferred from manual reading of the NBSAPs. Our analysis reveals variations in focus between terrestrial and aquatic systems that differ across country types and groups (e.g., inland, coast, or island country groupings, and continents), with significant country-level residual effects. Additionally, differential weightings in the focus of plans relating to environmental status, stressors, or interventions are identified. This study demonstrates the utility of text-analysis tools, and how their use could assist better alignment of national biodiversity strategies and NBSAPs to the 2022–2030 ‘Biodiversity Plan’, to achieve more holistic and better-aligned approaches for conserving biodiversity towards the CBD’s 2050 vision.

As a potentially important component of natural climate solutions, blue carbon is increasingly bridging climate change mitigation and adaptation with biodiversity conservation. This Policy and Practice Review provides comprehensive coverage and a balanced overview of the global blue carbon governance landscape, focusing on the United Nations system. The analysis systematically examines the policy interfaces and coupling mechanisms between blue carbon governance and five key international instruments: the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SDGs), and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. Based on this assessment, this review identifies four structural bottlenecks hindering effective UN-led governance: (1) conceptual and accounting discrepancies between “coastal blue carbon” and emerging “broad-sense blue carbon” definitions; (2) insufficient cross-convention synergy, leading to fragmented regulations and high transaction costs; (3) inadequate implementation of the Common But Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR) principle, particularly for coastal developing countries and small island nations; and (4) persistent funding and capacity gaps throughout the entire lifecycle of blue carbon projects. In response, this review proposes three actionable recommendations for institutional reform: (1) establishing a “minimum consistency standards package” with cross-institution mutual recognition within the UN system; (2) developing “nationally integrated blue carbon policy packages” aligned with Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs), Ramsar designations, and national disaster reduction strategies; and (3) implementing the CBDR principle through concrete pathways for mandatory funding and technology transfer

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was adopted in 1993 to conserve and sustainably use biodiversity and its components. Since then, member countries have written National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans (NBSAPs) to mainstream biodiversity across government and society, reduce the drivers of biodiversity loss, improve the status of species and ecosystems, and build capacity to implement solutions. We evaluated the NBSAPs of the 30 most biodiverse signatories to determine how well they (1) assessed the status of their species and habitats, (2) developed effective conservation-related strategies with measurable indicators, and (3) planned to implement these strategies. We also examined the signatories’ National Reports and compared reported progress to a suite of independent environmental and social variables. We found both strengths and weaknesses throughout the NBSAPs. Importantly, NBSAP strength had no significant effect on slowing biodiversity loss. Further, the countries that reported greater overall progress toward reducing extinction risk tended to have worse biodiversity declines. However, greater protections of habitats and ecosystems were associated with reduced decline. Social data suggested that countries require a free press, a decent standard of living, and measures to combat corruption to effectively implement their NBSAPs and protect biodiversity. The CBD is evolving as lessons are learned. At the international level, implementation assistance, sufficient funding, and independent progress assessments are needed, and biodiversity protection must be integrated more effectively into the Sustainable Development Goals. At the national level, both NBSAPs and their implementation need improved communication, coordination, funding, monitoring, accountability and enforcement.

Abstract The Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF), the new Measurement, Reporting and Verification arrangements under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)'s Paris Agreement, became operational in 2024. Here, we discuss how this new framework could provide an opportunity for strengthening alignment between commitments to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the UNFCCC. We highlight how the ETF provides an interesting platform to showcase linkages between the nature and climate crises and could help align CBD's National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans with UNFCCC's Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans. We however argue that capitalising on this opportunity will require addressing challenges around financing, capacity building and political will. It will also require adopting a unified ecosystem monitoring and reporting approach across conventions. Practical implication . Synergistic policy agendas are critical to addressing the intertwined nature and climate crises. Existing platforms to promote and operationalise such alignment are currently rare. We believe the ETF is one such platform that, if well used, could act as an efficiency multiplier and cost and time saver for Parties to the two Rio conventions. As the mandatory reporting framework of the legally binding Paris Agreement, ensuring strong visibility of biodiversity's contribution to climate change mitigation and adaptation could also offer an indirect yet tangible mechanism for stronger and more politically sustainable commitments on nature.

Marine biodiversity forms the foundation of ecological balance, coastal livelihoods, and global sustainability. However, rapid industrialization, port expansion, coastal infrastructure, and resource exploitation increasingly threaten fragile marine ecosystems. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has emerged as a critical preventive tool to safeguard marine biodiversity by integrating ecological concerns into development planning. Through systematic identification, prediction, and evaluation of potential impacts, EIA ensures that projects are designed and implemented with minimal harm to marine habitats. Baseline ecological studies, risk assessments, and stakeholder consultations provide the scientific and social foundation for informed decision-making. In coastal and marine contexts, EIA addresses issues such as habitat destruction, pollution from effluents, dredging impacts, shipping activities, and cumulative pressures on fisheries and coral reefs. International frameworks like the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and national regulations, including India’s EIA Notification (2006), mandate rigorous evaluation of projects affecting coastal zones. Case studies of port modernization, aquaculture expansion, and offshore energy projects highlight both the strengths and limitations of current practices. While EIA has succeeded in raising awareness and enforcing mitigation measures, challenges remain in terms of data gaps, enforcement, and meaningful public participation. Strengthening ecosystem-based approaches, cumulative impact assessments, and adaptive monitoring can enhance EIA’s effectiveness. From the author’s perspective, EIA is not merely a regulatory requirement but a governance instrument that balances development imperatives with ecological stewardship. Its role in protecting marine biodiversity is pivotal for ensuring that modernization and expansion proceed without compromising the long-term resilience of ocean ecosystems.

Climate change has emerged as a dominant driver of global biodiversity loss, profoundly altering zoological diversity, species distribution, and ecosystem functioning. Rising temperatures, erratic precipitation, ocean acidification, and habitat fragmentation disrupt physiological processes, migration patterns, and trophic interactions across taxa. This review explores the impact of climate change on zoological diversity and species distribution. Terrestrial, aquatic, and marine ecosystems exhibit varying degrees of vulnerability, with endemic and specialised species facing heightened extinction risks. Polar fauna such as seals and polar bears, tropical primates, coral reef communities, and migratory birds demonstrate clear evidence of climate-induced population decline and range shifts. Evolutionary responses, including genetic adaptation and phenotypic plasticity, are observed in some taxa but remain insufficient to counter rapid environmental changes. Advances in remote sensing, GIS-based species modelling, and molecular techniques such as genomics and environmental DNA (eDNA) have enhanced understanding of climate impacts and enabled predictive biodiversity mapping. Conservation measures encompassing ecosystem-based adaptation, habitat restoration, captive breeding, and wildlife corridor establishment contribute to mitigating biodiversity loss. Policy frameworks under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), IUCN, and IPCC emphasise integrating nature-based solutions with national climate strategies. Despite significant progress, uncertainties in predictive models, data scarcity, and limited integration between ecological and socio-economic systems impede effective conservation planning. Future research must prioritise long-term ecological monitoring, multi-scale data synthesis, and cross-sectoral policy implementation to enhance resilience. Integrating indigenous ecological knowledge with scientific innovations will strengthen adaptation measures and ensure sustainable biodiversity management in the face of accelerating climatic shifts.

Abstract In the 1990s, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) emerged as the primary international forum for managing the interface between biodiversity and biotechnology. Three legally binding protocols to the Convention were concluded, all aiming to regulate bio-innovation. Despite the rapid pace of biotechnological innovation, however, and its implications for biodiversity and equity, CBD policy outcomes have recently shifted towards lower stringency in substance and weaker institutionalization in process. To confirm this trend, we examine decisions adopted by the CBD Conferences of the Parties in 2022 and 2024. We focus on outcomes on three key agenda items: (i) digital sequence information on genetic resources, (ii) risk assessment of living modified organisms, and (iii) synthetic biology. We analyze shifts towards lower stringency in the light of scholarship on legalization and de-legalization, including the softening of international law. We conclude by assessing the implications for the CBD, and for global biotechnology governance more generally.

Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS) was formalized through the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), adopted at the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development, providing an institutional framework that contributes to biodiversity conservation by allowing each country to exercise sovereignty over its biological resources and equitably share the benefits arising from their utilization. Subsequently, the Nagoya Protocol strengthened the legal binding nature of access to genetic resources; however, discussions on ABS in the field of animal genetic resources (AnGR) remain relatively insufficient compared to those on plants and microorganisms. This study therefore compares and analyzes the current ABS frameworks for animal genetic resources across major countries, highlighting the effectiveness of these systems and drawing policy implications. In conclusion, while countries have established diverse ABS frameworks tailored to their legal and institutional contexts, international cooperation mechanisms specifically focused on animal genetic resources remain limited. Accordingly, the establishment of a global governance framework is needed in the future, focusing on harmonization of national systems, clarification of the inclusion of digital information, and strengthening the practical enforcement of benefit-sharing.

Abstract The blue economy represents a strategic pathway to achieve sustainable development by aligning marine resource utilization with ecological sustainability and social equity. However, in Indonesia, its implementation is obstructed by legal fragmentation, regulatory overlaps, and weak institutional coordination. This study adopts a normative juridical approach to examine national and international legal frameworks governing the blue economy. Key instruments analyzed include UNCLOS, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), Indonesian marine laws, and environmental regulations such as Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs). The analysis reveals persistent regulatory gaps, inter-agency fragmentation, and limited enforcement mechanisms that compromise policy effectiveness. The absence of integrated legal coordination hinders efforts to align economic growth with marine conservation goals. To address these issues, this paper proposes a harmonized legal model emphasizing vertical (national–regional) and horizontal (inter-sectoral) integration. Best practices such as Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) and Ecosystem-Based Management (EBM) are recommended to guide legal and institutional reform. Strengthening legal coherence and institutional capacity is essential to support Indonesia’s commitment to SDG 14, enhance marine resilience, and develop effective blue Winance strategies. This research contributes to advancing sustainable ocean governance through actionable legal and policy recommendations that integrate environmental safeguards with economic priorities.

ABSTRACTAmong factors that contribute to global biodiversity loss, habitat loss through unsustainable land use and land cover changes has gained prominence, with impacts being exacerbated by increasing human populations. Establishing protected area networks (PANs) is strongly advocated by national and international mechanisms, such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), as a primary strategy to guide biodiversity conservation and management; however, this can undermine conservation efforts outside protected areas. Understanding how people and biodiversity overlap and interact outside protected area networks (OPAN areas) is essential for setting realistic, sustainable targets to guide biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service provision beyond PAN. However, how OPAN areas can sustain or enhance ecosystem services (ESs) through improved conservation and management remains unassessed. We applied a novel ecosystem‐based conservation (EBC) framework, using data from Tanzania, to assess how biodiversity and land use/land cover (LULC) types shape the monetary value of selected ESs in OPAN areas, and in future scenarios where restoration of priority wildlife corridors is implemented by 2030. Across the six ecosystems and four LULC types assessed, waterbody delivered the highest ES value (US$12.8 billion) through water provision and flood control. OPAN areas in miombo woodland also yielded high value (US$12.4 billion), with 46% from flood control and 54% from water provision and carbon storage. ES values varied across OPANs, mainly driven by relative size and degradation level. Restoring 197,497 ha of degraded land within 53 prioritised wildlife corridors in Tanzania could generate up to US$62.8 million annually in ESs under full restoration, and US$31.4 million under partial restoration, with carbon storage contributing over 90% of total value. Policy implications: The spatial heterogeneity and ES overlap observed highlight the need to integrate OPANs into the EBC framework, linking local restoration gains with national policies and global biodiversity frameworks.

In the era of the sixth mass extinction, reversing global biodiversity loss is of vital importance for life on Earth. In 2022, parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), a strategic plan with 23 action-oriented targets to be achieved by 2030. However, biodiversity action carries direct and indirect costs that are unevenly distributed globally. Moreover, parties to the CBD may differ relative to various aspects of bearing these costs. Although the GBF implicitly acknowledges its parties' common but different responsibilities for its implementation, what this means in practice is left open. We suggested a distributive justice framework to guide global sharing of the costs of biodiversity action, with a focus on specific GBF targets. We combined the contributor pays, beneficiary pays, and ability to pay principles from the normative-philosophical justice literature together with empirical information on trends in biodiversity degradation, benefits from resource exploitation, and livelihood levels in different countries to develop a distinct and comprehensive account of distributive justice in a global biodiversity policy context and to specify implications for target implementation. Our framework suggests that high-income countries should provide substantial financial resources for the implementation of GBF targets domestically and internationally. Moreover, these countries have a particularly high moral obligation to take action to reduce pressure on biodiversity-for instance, by reducing pollution or changing consumption patterns. Recent institutional innovations related to the funding, planning, monitoring, reporting, and review structures of the GBF hold promise for its just implementation, which ultimately depends on parties' political will.