特別会員寄稿

Humanity owes nature a huge debt:
Let’s make peace with nature
Elizabeth Taylor Jay
Vice Minister of Multilateral Affairs of Colombia
Biologist with emphasis in Marine Biology and Master’s degree in Marine Environmental Protection, with large professional
experience in public administration and practice in international consulting for environmental issues, climate change andsustainable development. She has stood out by serving as Co-Agent of Colombia before the International Court of Justice,
she is Former Ambassador of Colombia in Kenya and Former Director of Marine, Coastal Affairs and Aquatic Resources ofthe Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of Colombia, in addition, Former Director of the Corporation for theSustainable Development of the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina -CORALINA.

2024年10月21日～ 11月1日、生物多様性条約第16回締約国会議（COP16）がコロンビア共和国・カリで開催されることに先立ち、駐日コロンビア共和国大使館の協力により、
Elizabeth Taylor Jayコロンビア共和国多国間問題担当副大臣より寄稿いただきました。
（JOI編集部より）

We must act swiftly; our planet is running out of time.
Humanity’s ecological footprint is exceeding the limitsof our planetary boundaries, due to unsustainableproduction and consumption patterns, which aresystematically harming nature. The future of humanity
stands at a critical juncture where we must reaffirm ourunwavering commitment to our planet and to future
generations. Environmental degradation and biodiversity
loss threaten not only the health of our ecosystems but
also the social, economic, and political stability of oursocieties. It is time to make peace with nature.
In order to halt and reverse biodiversity loss andadequately adapt to the impacts of climate change, wemust reevaluate our relationship with nature. Protecting
the environment and promoting peace are intrinsicallylinked; as stated in the 2030 Sustainable Development
Agenda, there can be no sustainable development withoutpeace, nor peace without sustainable development.
Celebrated every two years, the Convention on Biological
Diversity’s (CBD) 16th meeting of the Conference of theParties (COP16) has placed peace with nature at its core,expecting representatives from 196 countries in Cali,
Colombia, from October 21st until November 1st, to set
an inspiring example pursuing the conservation andsustainable use of biodiversity into our daily life.
422024.7In 2010, Japan hosted alandmarkagreement
during COP10, when theNagoya Protocol wasadopted on access togenetic resources and fair and equitable sharing ofbenefits arising from their utilization. Colombia isaiming for COP16 to also be a historical one: it is thefirst biodiversity conference since the adoption of theKunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework(GBF), also known as the Biodiversity Plan. The GBF
was adopted in December 2022 at COP 15, andestablishes a roadmap for countries to take actions at
the national level to achieve its 4 objectives and 23
goals, in order to stop and reverse the loss ofbiodiversity by 2030. COP16’s focus will be on
enhancing ambition and supporting countries inaligning their National Biodiversity Strategies andAction Plans (NBSAPs) with the Biodiversity Plan.
Peace with nature also references to the interlinkages
between climate change and biodiversity, from anenvironmental justice approach, paving the road towards
the upcoming COP30 of the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to becelebrated in Brazil next year. The time has come tohistorically proven to harm, modify, and transform
entire ecosystems, jeopardizing their resilience and itscapacity to survive adversity. An important step forward
is preventing nature from harm’s way. Nature must not
be considered a spoil of war, nor should it be exposed
to it. World policy must be oriented towards eliminating
the threat of war, renouncing the use or threat of force
between countries, and peacefully settling disputes inaccordance with the United Nations’ Charter.
And finally, everyone is invited. This COP will be thepeople’s COP, open to civil society in an unprecedented
manner. For the first time ever in a CBD COP will
there be a Green Zone, one that is dedicated to culturalactivities, exhibitions, dialogues, among others, open
to the public. Anyone who is interested in learning,
encourage discussions, and exchanging views andproposals on the global challenge of biodiversity will
be welcomed. On the sidelines of COP, Colombia will
present the “Peace for Nature Coalition”, which will
be a call to action open to every State, civil society,world leaders, environmental defenders, among others.

Photos courtesy of Instituto Humboldt

evaluate the possibility of unifying both agendas,
understanding climate change and the loss of biodiversity
as intrinsically related challenges. Colombia is proud tobe the second most megadiverse country in the world,
and it is because of this that it’s hosting the world’s mostimportant Biodiversity Summit. The summit aims tobring together leaders, experts, and decision-makers toestablish joint goals on biodiversity protection and tohalt and reverse the loss of nature, which threatens thesurvival of over a million species worldwide. The
country of beauty is home to 10% of the world’s
biodiversity with over 50,000 registered species andnearly 31 million hectares of protected areas, equivalent
to 15% of the national territory.
Peace with nature also requires making peace amongpeople. War dynamics and organized crime have

Humanity is indebted to nature, and it’s time to makepeace. COP16 is a beacon of hope to save nature andlife as we know it. Countries must present their
NBSAPs soon, and make the necessary adjustments
for their national plans to keep on track with theroadmap signaled by the Kunming-Montreal Global
Biodiversity Framework. COP16 aims to further
strengthen resource mobilization for the implementationof the Global Framework, as well as finalize andoperationalize a multilateral mechanism on the fairand equitable sharing of benefits derived from the useof digital sequence information on genetic resources.
COP16 Official Website:
https://www.cbd.int/conferences/2024

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E-mail: bd@joi.or.jp

駐日コロンビア共和国大使館
E-mail: ejapon@cancilleria.gov.cohttps://japon.embajada.gov.co/

2024.743