# UN Experts Urge States to Accelerate Biodiversity Targets and Prioritise Human Rights Ahead of COP17

> GENEVA — Ahead of the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17), United Nations experts issued a statement calling on governments to speed up the implementation of the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework...

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- Published: 2026-10-22T21:48:00+11:00
- Updated: 2026-10-22T18:20:03+11:00
- Author: PressClubAi
- Source: UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR)
- Source URL: http://ohchr.org/en/statements-and-speeches/2026/10/ahead-cop17-un-experts-urge-states-speed-implementation
- Source context: UN agency source, Primary source
- Source note: Official UN human rights office material; may include rights assessments, statements, and advocacy positions.
- Categories: environment, Human Rights, national news
- Tags: biodiversity, conservation, cop17, human rights, kmgbf, United Nations

## Story

GENEVA — Ahead of the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17), United Nations experts issued a statement calling on governments to speed up the implementation of the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) and integrate human rights into their environmental strategies.

The experts expressed concern over the slow collective implementation of agreed targets aimed at tackling global biodiversity loss, citing findings from the Global review of collective progress in the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. They noted that the current pace of progress fails to match the urgency of the biodiversity crisis.

According to the statement, particular areas of concern include a lack of progress in protecting environmental human rights defenders, ensuring gender-responsive governance, and facilitating the participation of rightsholders. The experts warned that without robust rights-based indicators to assess real impacts on the ground, the upcoming stocktaking process at COP17 risks turning into a mere accounting exercise.

The KMGBF framework requires states to follow a human rights-based approach, which includes the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment. It formally recognises the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities—such as peasants and small-scale fishers—to their lands, territories, resources, and traditional knowledge, while also addressing gender equality and the rights of children, youth, and persons with disabilities.

The experts stated that implementation efforts by states, businesses, and UN bodies must align with international human rights standards, including the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and guidance from various UN treaty bodies. They stressed that affected populations must be recognised as rights-holders and active partners in conservation efforts rather than generic non-state actors.

Additionally, the experts called on states to exercise stringent due diligence to protect biodiversity and ecosystems in line with international obligations, pointing to advisory opinions from the International Court of Justice, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

## Links

- [Source](http://ohchr.org/en/statements-and-speeches/2026/10/ahead-cop17-un-experts-urge-states-speed-implementation)