The Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) is a landmark international agreement designed to address the accelerating crisis of nature loss. Adopted by the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Montreal, Canada, in December 2022, the framework replaced the previous Strategic Plan for Biodiversity and the largely missed Aichi Biodiversity Targets. This new accord establishes a unified global mission: to take urgent action to halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity so that nature is on a path to recovery by 2030. The GBF provides a shared roadmap for nations to safeguard the intricate web of life on Earth, acknowledging that ecosystem health directly supports human well-being and a sustainable future.
The Need for Global Action
The impetus for the Global Biodiversity Framework stems from scientific evidence indicating that the planet is experiencing a rapid decline in species diversity. Current extinction rates are estimated to be 100 to 1,000 times higher than the naturally occurring background rate. Since 1970, populations of monitored wild species, including mammals, birds, fish, amphibians, and reptiles, have declined by an average of 69% globally. This collapse is not uniform, with regions like Latin America and the Caribbean experiencing even steeper average population losses.
This rapid decline is primarily driven by human activities, including habitat destruction, overexploitation of resources, pollution, the introduction of invasive species, and climate change. For instance, human use has modified a significant portion of land and oceans, leading to the destruction of habitats like wetlands, which have been reduced by an estimated 85% globally. The resulting destabilization of ecosystems threatens natural services that support human societies, such as clean water, pollination for crops, and climate regulation. The GBF represents an international commitment to address these drivers directly.
Architecture of the Framework
The Global Biodiversity Framework is structured around a long-term Vision for 2050 and four overarching Global Goals. The Vision is one of “living in harmony with nature,” where biodiversity is valued, conserved, restored, and wisely used, maintaining ecosystem services and a healthy planet for all people. The four Goals represent the high-level aspirations for the world to achieve by 2050, providing the ultimate ambition for the action-oriented 2030 targets.
Goal A focuses on the integrity, connectivity, and resilience of ecosystems, aiming to halt human-induced extinction of known threatened species. This goal seeks to substantially increase the area of natural ecosystems and maintain genetic diversity. Goal B addresses the sustainable use of biodiversity, ensuring that nature’s contributions to people, such as food and water, are valued and managed for the benefit of present and future generations.
Goal C is centered on the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources, including access to and transfer of technology. This commitment acknowledges the traditional knowledge associated with biodiversity, particularly from Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Goal D ensures that the necessary means for implementation, including financial resources, capacity-building, and technical cooperation, are secured and equitably accessible to all parties, progressively closing the estimated $700 billion annual biodiversity finance gap.
The Core Action Commitments
To bridge the gap between the 2050 Goals and immediate action, the GBF establishes 23 action-oriented Global Targets to be achieved by 2030. The most prominent commitment is the “30×30” target (Target 3), which mandates the effective conservation and management of at least 30% of the world’s terrestrial, inland water, coastal, and marine areas. This represents a significant increase in global ambition compared to the previous Aichi target, which aimed for 17% of terrestrial and 10% of marine areas.
The framework also places a strong emphasis on reducing the direct threats that drive biodiversity loss. Target 7 requires countries to reduce pollution risks and the negative impacts of pollution from all sources to levels that are not harmful to biodiversity. This includes reducing excess nutrients lost to the environment and the overall risk from pesticides and highly hazardous chemicals by at least half. Furthermore, Target 6 addresses invasive alien species by committing to reduce the rates of their introduction and establishment by at least 50% by 2030.
Beyond protection and threat reduction, other action commitments focus on the sustainable use of nature and the integration of biodiversity into human systems. Target 10 seeks to ensure that areas under agriculture, aquaculture, forestry, and fisheries are managed sustainably. Another powerful action commitment is Target 18, which requires the identification and elimination, phase-out, or reform of incentives, including subsidies, that are harmful to biodiversity, aiming to reduce them by at least $500 billion per year by 2030.
Mechanisms for Success
The GBF recognizes that ambitious targets require robust mechanisms for implementation, finance, and accountability. A central component is the requirement for all countries to update and align their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) with the framework’s 23 Targets. This process translates global commitments into specific national priorities and actions, ensuring a “whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach.”
A dedicated resource mobilization strategy aims to close the substantial biodiversity finance gap. Target 19 commits countries to substantially increase financial resources from all sources—public, private, domestic, and international—to at least $200 billion per year by 2030. This includes increasing international financial flows from developed to developing countries to at least $30 billion per year by 2030. The creation of the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, hosted by the Global Environment Facility, is a direct response to the need for increased, accessible funding.
Accountability is reinforced through an enhanced mechanism for planning, monitoring, reporting, and review (PMRR). This system requires countries to periodically report on their progress toward national targets, using a set of agreed-upon indicators. This monitoring framework ensures transparency and allows the global community to track collective progress, enabling the adaptive management necessary to achieve the GBF’s goal of putting nature on a path to recovery.