ESG Insider: COP16 launches fund to share benefits of genetic biodiversity data
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Negotiations at COP16, the UN’s biodiversity-focused Conference of the Parties in Cali, Colombia, extended into Nov. 2 before being suspended. Negotiators reached some key agreements at the conference, such as launching a voluntary fund designed to share the benefits of digital genetic information.
Digital sequence information is genetic data derived from biodiversity and is increasingly being used in research — for example, to develop medicines and vaccines. Guidelines for the newly launched “Cali fund” state that large companies and organizations that receive benefit commercially from this digital sequence information should contribute to the fund based on their profits or revenues. At least half of the funding is expected to support Indigenous peoples and local communities, the UN said. Parties also agreed on the creation of a new body to give Indigenous peoples and local communities a greater say in the protection of nature, a global plan on biodiversity and health and new mechanisms to identify new ecologically or biologically significant marine areas.
However, no agreement was reached on how to operationalize a fund to prevent biodiversity loss as agreed in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework signed in 2022. Under the framework, parties agreed to raise $200 billion annually by 2030, but the logistics of this fund have yet to be decided. Future talks on funding will discuss the potential creation of a new global biodiversity fund to mobilize capital.
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In this week's ESG Insider podcast, we explore what role fixed income markets are playing to plug the sustainable finance gap.
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Podcast
ESG Insider Podcast
How fixed income is evolving to fill gaps in sustainable finance The common thread in big sustainability-related events like COP16 and the UN’s upcoming climate change conference, COP29 in Baku Azerbaijan, is the challenge of addressing the big financing gaps for a range of sustainability issues — including climate, nature, and social equity. In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we explore how the fixed income market is evolving to help fill in some of those sustainable finance gaps. >>Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or YouTube Music
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