The UN biodiversity conference COP17 opens Monday in Yerevan, Armenia, where nearly 200 parties will review progress on 23 global targets set at the 2022 Montreal deal. The United States is not a party. A central issue is the gap between pledged funding and actual money raised to protect oceans, forests and other key ecosystems.
Nations agreed to protect 30% of land and water important for biodiversity by 2030, a “30×30” goal, and to mobilize $200 billion annually by that year. They also pledged to reform or phase out subsidies that could free up another $500 billion for nature and to increase financing for poorer countries to $20 billion a year by 2025, rising to $30 billion by 2030. Yet OECD data show fundraising of only $75‑92 billion per year from 2023‑2025, less than half the 2030 target.
A UN progress report released Thursday found fewer than half of the parties’ biodiversity targets are on track, and current commitments would protect only 26% of land and 12% of sea by 2030. “We’re not moving fast enough,” said convention executive secretary Astrid Schomaker. Efforts to cut $500 billion in harmful subsidies have made little headway, with few countries identifying specific cuts.
The report underscores a grim backdrop: three‑quarters of the world’s land is “severely altered” by humans, and a million species face extinction, while wildlife populations have fallen an average of 73% since 1970, according to the WWF’s 2026 Living Planet Report. “We are losing everything that matters for us as humans on this planet,” Schomaker warned. Nonetheless, more than 5,000 initiatives tied to the treaty have been announced, offering a glimmer of hope.
Sources: 8 News Now
Original reporting: 8 News Now →
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