Kunming Dialogue Reviews Progress of GBF

Kunming Dialogue Reviews Progress of GBF

RITURAJ PHUKAN

The Kunming Dialogue in China, from 7 to 9 September 2026, brought together Parties and stakeholders to explore ways to close gaps identified in the global report on collective progress in implementing the GBF and to share best practices and solutions. Around 300 participants including Parties, Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IPLCs), women, youth, and other stakeholders contributed their suggestions to the global review.

Biodiversity sustains our societies and is crucial for food and water security, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and human and planetary health. Yet the vast majority of indicators that track biodiversity and ecosystem health on a global scale show a decline. Globally, biodiversity is declining at an unprecedented rate, degrading ecosystems and threatening human survival.

It has been four years since the GBF was adopted during the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 2022. It set the blueprint to reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 and put us back to a path of living in harmony with nature.

We are now halfway through, and the recent draft global report on collective progress in the implementation of the GBF showed that while the Framework has generated unprecedented global engagement, important gaps remain across many of its targets.The report found that its 2030 goals and targets will remain out of reach unless collective implementation accelerates rapidly. The CBD Secretariat convened the Kunming Dialogue as an informal forum to discuss the report and the upcoming global review.

Discussions covered five topics aligned with the report’s key messages. Participants examined the root causes of gaps between the collective scope and coverage of national targets and those of the Framework’s global targets. They also considered how insufficient means of implementation have hindered progress and how these challenges can be overcome.

Discussions on action and implementation examined initiatives and partnerships that could strengthen efforts to meet national targets and commitments, as well as the revisions needed to improve their effectiveness. Participants also shared experiences with data systems and processes that support the effective use of available data and knowledge.

Participants noted that national targets often diverge from GBF targets because countries have different circumstances and priorities. They also recommended integrating biodiversity action across ministries, mainstreaming biodiversity considerations, and strengthening stakeholder cooperation.

Finally, discussions were held on how to strengthen whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches while respecting circumstances and priorities of Parties, Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IPLCs), and other stakeholders. A series of online webinars took place on 7 and 8 September 2026 to collect inputs from those unable to attend the in-person dialogue for integration into the outcome of the Kunming Dialogue.

A global review will assess progress in implementing the GBFCOP 17, scheduled for 19–30 October 2026 in Yerevan, Armenia. The review will draw mainly on national reports and a global report on collective implementation progress, whose draft was examined in depth at the CBD Subsidiary Bodies’ July–August 2026 meetings. Key messages from the Kunming discussions were presented at the closing plenary. With support from the CBD Secretariat, a comprehensive summary will be prepared to inform the global review deliberations and presented at COP 17.

By adopting the GBF in 2022, the international community took a vital policy step toward nature’s recovery. Its success, however, depends on implementation that drives transformative change by tackling the root causes of biodiversity loss, including unsustainable consumption, inequality, and changes in land and sea use.

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RITURAJ PHUKAN : Founder, Indigenous People’s Climate Justice Forum; Co-Founder, Smily Academy ;National Coordinator for Biodiversity, The Climate Reality Project India; Member, IUCN Wilderness Specialist Group; Commission Member – IUCN WCPA Climate Change, IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation, IUCN WCPA Indigenous People and Protected Areas Specialist Groups, IUCN WCPA South Asia Region and IUCN WCPA-SSC Invasive Alien Species Task Force; Member, International Antarctic Expedition 2013; Climate Force Arctic 2019 ; Ambassador, Marine Arctic Peace Sanctuary. Rituraj Phukan is the Climate Editor, Mahabahu , Managing Editor –Mahabahu Mirror and  the Secretary cum Convenor, Mahabahu Climate Forum.

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