Integrating Climate and Biodiversity Agendas: The challenge and the opportunity for the COP30 in Brazil

ABSTRACT Biodiversity loss, land degradation, and climate change are deeply interlinked. We present the main conclusions of an initiative led by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), which focuses on the synergies between the objectives of the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals, as well as climate change policies and plans, to increase the potential for achieving both agendas. Conserving biodiversity and restoring ecosystems helps stabilize the climate, while climate action supports the health of ecosystems. Nature-based Solutions (NbS), through conservation, restoration, and ecosystem management, can contribute to a mutual reinforcement of multiple goals. Quantified benefits of these synergies often outweigh costs, especially long-term. Integrated policies are urgently needed to align biodiversity and climate goals and financing, as well as to address trade-offs and environmental injustice. However, fragmented governance, as exemplified by the global conventions on biological diversity, climate change, and desertification, and siloed financing, hinder joint action. Policy levers could overcome barriers and accelerate action. The Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Climate Change in Brazil, a megadiverse country with significant greenhouse gas emissions from the land-use sector, represents an opportunity to integrate policy agendas and explore synergies that can accelerate action.