On the initiative of the President of the Republic and in cooperation with the United States and China, a One Planet event at COP27 brought together Heads of State and Government and Ministers from Africa, Asia and Latin America ; as well as leaders of international organizations and civil society. The discussion focused on the challenge of vital carbon and biodiversity reserves and the launch of new climate and biodiversity partnerships.
Participants affirmed the need to protect vital stores of carbon and biodiversity as a priority. These areas are both natural carbon stocks and areas rich in biodiversity, such as peatlands, mangroves and old growth forests. They cover less than 14% of the Earth's surface and concentrate more than 75% of what scientists call "irrecoverable carbon" and 91% of the vertebrate species habitats. If these landscapes are destroyed, large amounts of carbon will be released into the atmosphere and many species of flora and fauna may disappear, dangerously accelerating climate change and the loss of biodiversity.
To preserve these spaces, the international leaders gathered for this event announced their willingness to work together to form Positive Conservation Partnerships (PCP). These new partnerships will make it possible to give these vital reserves of carbon and biodiversity a special status at the international level, and to offer political and financial contracts allowing the States that host them to guarantee their conservation.
Costa Rica will play a key role in this initiative, as part of the High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People, which aims to protect 30% of marine and terrestrial spaces by 2030. Colombia, Gabon and the Philippines have affirmed their willingness to engage in these Partnerships. The President of the Republic of Rwanda, Mr. Paul KAGAME, underlined his interest in the discussions and his willingness to move forward in the protection of natural carbon reserves.
The Bezos Earth Fund has pledged to invest $1 billion by 2030 for the conservation of the most important carbon and biodiversity stores, including through Positive Conservation Partnerships. The Global Environment Facility will also launch a high-level group to make recommendations on the creation of a biodiversity credit market.
At the end of the event, Mr. Ali BONGO, President of the Republic of Gabon and Mr. Emmanuel MACRON announced that a One Planet summit dedicated to forestry issues would be held in Libreville in March 2023. This summit will be an opportunity to make ambitious progress on the preservation of tropical forests, which are at the heart of climate and biodiversity issues.
