The European Committee of the Regions (CoR), a partner of the Advisory Committee on Subnational Governments, hosted the stakeholder consultation and workshop titled “Bio-diverse cities and regions beyond 2020 at the UN CBD COP15 and in the next EU strategy” (Brussels, Belgium, 30-31 January 2020) aimed at gathering the voice of stakeholders on the important process for biodiversity currently taking place at a global and European level.

The event also focused on a very specific outcome which is to input information on an opinion that the CoR is drafting in regards to the next EU biodiversity strategy. The main goal is to adopt an official position of the CoR to share at the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework meetings and negotiations towards the 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UN CBD COP 15) that can also contribute to the post-2020 EU Biodiversity Strategy.

Subnational leaders, members of the Advisory Committee on Subnational Governments (AC SNG) and of Regions4, the regions of Basque Country, Catalonia and Lombardy attended the event to share their own experience in the implementation of EU directives related to biodiversity as well as their perspective on what could be improved in the new EU strategy.

As part of the AC SNG contributions to the dialogue, Renata Gomez, Biodiversity Programme Manager of Regions4, shared the Advisory Committee’s vision in light of the recent publication of the zero draft of the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework that included recommendations to the Convention on Biological Diversity Secretariat and its Parties in relation to:

• Specificity on the means of the participation of subnational governments within the post-2020 framework and its 20 action targets;
• Inclusion of the subnational level of government throughout the text;
• Consider the role of subnational governments in the implementation of nature-based solutions and mainstreaming biodiversity;
• Recommendation on the adoption of a Decision 15/ – on a renewal of the Plan of Action on Subnational Governments, Cities and Other Local Authorities for Biodiversity (2011-2020) as a major milestone in the implementation process of the new framework;
• And, suggested the consideration of the very complex and diverse priorities that take place at the local and subnational level

The Opinion will be ready by 6 April and will be voted at the plenary session in early May 2020. More information will be made available at the CoR website: https://cor.europa.eu/

Further information:

To learn more about the work of the Advisory Committee on Subnational Governments and Biodiversity click here.

To read our latest report “Mainstreaming Biodiversity: The Subnational Government Experience” please visit our Knowledge Hub.