China leads in reversing biodiversity loss: Expert

GENEVA — China is "the hero of global biodiversity" and plays a fundamental role in the sustainable development agenda, said the head of the newly-launched Nature Positive Initiative.

Speaking ahead of the annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, next week, Marco Lambertini said China is leading the way in reversing biodiversity loss and combating the global climate crisis.

"China is the hero of the Global Biodiversity Framework, leading almost 200 nations to agree to the most ambitious and comprehensive global plan for nature ever adopted," he said.

In December 2022, China held the presidency of the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, and spearheaded a series of initiatives, including the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

The adoption of the landmark framework under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity has been described as the "Paris moment" for nature.

"China has shown leadership, particularly in the energy sector. Honestly, if China was not to invest what they invested in the development of new technologies, of renewable energies, and scale up the production, we wouldn't be where we are now with solar energy being competitive with oil, gas and even coal," Lambertini, former director-general of the World Wildlife Fund, said.

Last September, 27 of the world's largest nature conservation organizations, institutes, business and finance coalitions and sustainability standard-setting agencies came together to launch the Nature Positive Initiative. It is aimed at driving alignment around the definition, integrity and use of the term "nature positive", and supporting broader, longer-term efforts to deliver nature-positive outcomes.

"Nature positive by 2030" refers to halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030 from a 2020 baseline, through measurable gains in the health, abundance, diversity and resilience of species, ecosystems and natural processes. "China has played a fundamental role in that phase of the sustainable development agenda," Lambertini told Xinhua News Agency in a recent interview. "The government is discussing right now, through the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development, the exact recommendations and approaches that will deliver a net positive outcome for nature, while developing the economy."

Sustainability link

Lambertini stressed that a positive economic outlook for any country is closely linked to sustainability.

"China has already demonstrated the ability to do that in the energy sector. Now, it's time to demonstrate the same in agriculture, fishing, forestry infrastructure and all sectors with a high ecological footprint. The only way to achieve a resilient and strong economy is to embrace environmental sustainability," he said.

In the World Economic Outlook in October, the International Monetary Fund forecast global real GDP growth last year at 3.0 percent, but cut its forecast this year to 2.9 percent.

Meanwhile, China's economy is expected to have grown by 5.4 percent last year due to a "strong" post-COVID-19 recovery, the global lender said in November.

"China has a lot to teach and share with the rest of the world in terms of their domestic successes in nature conservation. The whole discussion around the conservation of priority ecosystems and threatened species, the sustainable management of freshwater resources, and the plan around the Yangtze River are great examples," Lambertini said.

"All these are incredible successes at the domestic level that can be shared internationally, and equally, China can learn from the rest of the world.

"The dependence of business on nature has never been more recognized than today. The WEF program this year will feature a lot of nature topics, from the conservation of the oceans, forests, and freshwater, to the link between nature and climate."

Xinhua