Evolution, Systematics and Taxonomy  

The Atlas of Living Australia has been under development for some years, but was launched formally recently. It has a lot of familiar elements, but is interesting in bringing such a range of biodiversity information, links and tools together: collections, taxonomy, biological recording, citizen science, social media, news, events and more.

The Tenth Conference of the Parties (COP10) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has now finished. A useful summary is available with detail from IISD. /.....

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But in brief, the COP achieved its three high level objectives:

1. Adopting a ten-year Strategic Plan (the Aichi Target) for international and national action to save biodiversity in line with the CBD;
2. Agreeing a resource mobilization strategy to promote an increase in development assistance in support of biodiversity; and
3. Finalising a new international protocol on access to and sharing of the benefits (ABS) from the use of genetic resources.

The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from Their Utilization was seen as being the crucial element of COP10, without which agreement on the Strategic Plan and other elements was at risk. Lots of very intense negotiations before and during COP10 resulted in agreement, but many of the parties clearly see this as less than ideal, and a significant step forward, rather than the desired state. There remain many different perspectives on some ABS issues.

However, the Protocol sets out a structured basis for access to genetic resources on the basis of prior informed consent and mutually agreed terms and aims to strike a balance of access with fair and equitable sharing of benefits. There was important inclusion of traditional knowledge as well. The detail on implementation will require a lot of work and commitment – both to ensure access and the realization of benefits. Entry into force is planned for 2012.

The Strategic Plan includes 20 headline targets under five strategic goals and its scope is biodiversity within the whole UN system. As it is framed, it looks hugely ambitious and will require an immense effort to reach success, given the difficulty in reaching the 2010 goals.

The Strategic Plan frames commitments for 2015 for:

• implementing ABS; and
• minimizing pressures on coral reefs and other vulnerable ecosystems;

and for 2020 for a range of other goals, including:

• public awareness on biodiversity;
• the rate of loss of all natural habitats, including forests, is at least halved and, where feasible, brought close to zero and degradation and fragmentation is significantly reduced;
• all fish and aquatic plants managed and harvested sustainably;
• pollution at levels that are not detrimental to ecosystem function and biodiversity;
• at least 17% of terrestrial and inland water, and 10% of coastal and marine areas are conserved effectively;
• the extinction of known threatened species has been prevented and their conservation status improved and sustained;
• ecosystems that provide essential services are restored and safeguarded;
• ecosystem resilience and the contribution of biodiversity to carbon stocks has been enhanced, through conservation and restoration, including restoration of at least 15% of degraded ecosystems;
• knowledge, the science base and technologies relating to biodiversity, its values, functioning, status and trends, and the consequences of its loss, are improved, widely shared and transferred, and applied; 

The resource mobilization strategy aims to ensure that finance will be in place to deliver the Strategic Plan – the idea is to define how this will work and set targets before COP11 in 2012. There was discussion, negotiation and some commitment from donors – the idea being that they should build biodiversity into their funding priorities for the future.

Other issues and agreements: decision effectively suspending geo-engineering; trying to persuade governments to use the precautionary principle on the release of synthetic life into the environment; affirmed the role of CBD in REDD+; adopted the Tkarihwaié:ri code of ethical conduct on "Respect for the Cultural and Intellectual Heritage ofIndigenous and Local Communities Relevant for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biological Diversity"; and agreed increased cooperation among the Rio Conventions before the Rio+20 Summit in 2012. The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) was discussed and COP10 encouraged the UN General Assembly to consider establishing the mechanism. Quite a number of other issues of agreement, including uncontroversial support for the Global Taxonomy Initiative and a UN Decade on Biodiversity.