Greenpeace has issued a briefing paper analyzing the legal foundations for joint work between the UNFCCC and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Authored by Harro van Asselt and Tejas Rao, University of Cambridge, the paper points to a growing recognition that isolated approaches to climate change and biodiversity loss “will likely fail,” making the case for joint, synergistic effort to effectively address the two crises.

Titled, ‘Maximising Synergies to Address the Climate and Biodiversity Crises: Legal Foundations for Joint Work between the UNFCCC and CBD,’ the report highlights the intertwined nature of climate change and biodiversity loss, outlining how common drivers such as land-use change and fossil fuel use and “feedback loops” link the two together. Its analysis of “the existing legal and institutional landscape reveals both the gaps and the groundwork for further synergies,” noting that cooperation to date has mostly been ad hoc, voluntary, and lacking a formal mandate from parties.

The report highlights a landmark decision on biodiversity and climate change, adopted at the 16th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 16) to the CBD, which calls on the Presidencies of the CBD and UN Climate Change Conferences to strengthen multilateral coordination and invites submissions on options for enhanced policy coherence, including a potential joint work programme involving the CBD, UNFCCC, and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). According to the paper, “[t]his momentum coincides with mounting pressure from scientists, civil society, and some Parties to formally align the two regimes.”

Against this backdrop, the briefing paper lays out the legal foundation and arguments for a joint UNFCCC-CBD work programme. It notes that past examples of “inter-conventional cooperation,” including the Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) between the CBD and other environmental treaty bodies establishing joint work plans, and complementary decisions by the COPs to address cross-cutting issues, can be seen as precedents demonstrating that a joint work programme “in line with international law and each treaty’s governance processes” is possible.

The report makes specific proposals for legal and institutional reform, including the creation of a timebound but renewable joint work programme approved by both COPs, with a clear mandate, objectives, and review mechanisms. The briefing paper argues that enhancing synergies between the climate and biodiversity regimes “is not only desirable but imperative for the effectiveness of both.” It underscores that “forging this alliance under international law would be a transformative step, acknowledging that the fates of our climate and the living world are one, and must be tackled together through cohesive global action.”

The briefing paper was issued in June, ahead of the summer sessions of the UNFCCC Subsidiary Bodies. [Publication: Maximising Synergies to Address the Climate and Biodiversity Crises: Legal Foundations for Joint Work between the UNFCCC and CBD]