A little over one year ago, the world’s governments announced a historic plan to put nature on a path to recovery by 2030. To restore 30 per cent of degraded ecosystems and conserve 30 per cent of land, waters and seas, a ‘whole of society’ approach is vital. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (also now known as ‘The Biodiversity Plan’) explicitly recognises Indigenous Peoples and local communities’ rights and contributions to biodiversity and makes clear that action and cooperation by “non-state actors” is key to the successful implementation of The Biodiversity Plan.
The action of non-state organisations and individuals such as Indigenous Peoples, local communities, landowners, non-government organisations, local administrations such as cities, and businesses to protect, sustainably manage and restore areas of land and water also contributes to the goals of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, while strengthening action on the climate agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. Showcasing and celebrating commitments from non-state organisations and individuals is crucial to better recognise, understand and support the important role they play and to inspire further action.
The Nature Commitments Platform was established to help business, civil society and other non-state organisations and individuals achieve this wider recognition. The site was created by the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), in partnership with the Government of the Netherlands and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and currently showcases more than 200 area-based conservation pledges.
The commitments that have been listed range from pledges to help the Dehcho First Nation in Canada’s Northwest Territories establish an Indigenous guardians programme across 14,163 hectares, to a for-profit company in China carrying out ecosystem restoration and creating ecological corridors in urban areas.
Any non-state organisation can make an area-based commitment to the Nature Commitments platform.
Example from the Nature Commitments platform: The Princess Vlei Restoration Project
The Princess Vlei Forum, a non-profit organisation, has committed to conserving and restoring wetland habitats within the Greater Princess Vlei conservation area in South Africa. The Forum works alongside the local community and the City of Cape Town to conserve and restore the area for the benefit of people and nature. Since its launch in 2012, the Forum has protected the area from commercial development and is transforming it into a nature and heritage park that encourages community use. Thanks to these efforts, the Greater Princess Vlei conservation area was designated as a Provincial Heritage Site in 2020. The Forum is now a community partner in the management of the area and is working to restore its unique biodiversity. By 2022, the Forum had placed 0.8 hectares of degraded habitats in the area under active restoration and 1.55 hectares under passive restoration. This has included the restoration of endangered wetlands habitats such as the Cape Lowlands Freshwater Wetland habitat.
By March 2024, the Nature Commitments platform will feed live information on non-state commitments on restoration directly into the Framework for Ecosystem Restoration Monitoring (FERM), which is the official monitoring platform for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. FERM is also the official platform for countries reporting areas under restoration towards Target 2 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
By encouraging diverse groups to share information, exchange lessons learned and celebrate success, the platform aims to inspire ongoing action and build an empowered community of non-state conservation and restoration practitioners.
Information on the location, spatial extent and planned biodiversity outcomes will also help inform existing and future project donors.
“Since it was launched two years ago, the Nature Commitments platform has enabled 212 non-state organisations to showcase their area-based conservation and restoration work. We encourage all non-state organisations and individuals to explore the platform and share their commitments to inspire others to protect, sustainably manage and restore nature and galvanise inclusive action across all sectors of society.” Anushree Bhattacharjee, UNEP-WCMC Programme Officer and Nature Commitments Platform lead
“As we near the halfway mark to put nature on a course for recovery and achieve the aims of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, the Nature Commitments platform is a vital vehicle for strengthening site-based action for biodiversity. As discussions during the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly have repeatedly highlighted, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, civil society organisations, the private sector, and local authorities have a critical role to play in achieving global ambitions for the conservation, sustainable use, and restoration of biodiversity. We urge those taking action towards these goals to showcase their commitments and inspire further action.” Neville Ash, UNEP-WCMC Director
The Nature Commitments platform was initially planned so that early area-based conservation and restoration commitments which did not qualify for complementary initiatives also managed by UNEP-WCMC, notably Protected Planet and the ICCA Registry (a platform that showcases territories and areas conserved by Indigenous Peoples and local communities), had a platform to showcase their early ambition. Once they have progressed or completed their pledges, they can submit their commitments for consideration to Protected Planet or the ICCA Registry.
The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030, led by the United Nations Environment Programme, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and its partners, covers terrestrial as well as coastal and marine ecosystems. As a global call to action, it will draw together political support, scientific research and financial muscle to massively scale up restoration. Find out how you can contribute to the UN Decade. Follow #GenerationRestoration.