Policy Transfer Typology and Strategic Directions for Regional Adoption of the Global Biodiversity Framework

Background and objective: The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) provides a universal roadmap for biodiversity conservation, yet regional strategies vary significantly in their adoption. Prior research has focused primarily on national-level policies or descriptive accounts, offering limited insights into how subnational governments adopt and operationalize GBF. This study addresses this gap by applying a quantitative, checklist-based evaluation and a policy transfer perspective to systematically classify and compare regional biodiversity strategies.Methods: Biodiversity strategies from ten cities and regions across Asia, Europe, North America, and Africa were analyzed. A scoring framework was applied across three criteria—GBF integration, policy implementation capacity, and regional context reflection. Building policy transfer theory, adoption approaches were categorized into three typologies: Full Adoption, Selective Adoption, and Interpretive Adaptation.Results: The typology reveals clear trade-offs among international alignment, feasibility of implementation, and contextual adaptation. Full Adoption demonstrates strong alignment with global standards but requires substantial institutional and financial resources. Selective Adoption enhances flexibility and feasibility but risks weaker coherence. Interpretive Adaptation fosters socio-ecological relevance and participation but limits comparability and international connectivity.Conclusion: By linking policy transfer theory with regional biodiversity strategies, this study moves beyond descriptive typologies to demonstrate how global frameworks are adapted and reinterpreted in diverse governance contexts. Academically, it contributes empirical evidence of differentiated pathways in policy transfer. Practically, it provides actionable criteria and insights that regional policymakers can use to design LBSAPs tailored to institutional capacity and socio-ecological conditions, balancing international comparability with local legitimacy.