In brief
At COP17 in Yerevan, more than 100 countries agreed on the Yerevan Pathway, a four‑year plan to strengthen national strategies, monitoring, financing, technology transfer and inclusive participation for biodiversity. The pathway complements the 2022 Kunming‑Montreal framework and sets the stage for COP18 in Quito, Ecuador in 2028. Despite disagreements over finance and harmful subsidies, the agreement marks a significant step toward achieving 23 biodiversity targets by 2030.
In a historic conclave in Yerevan, Armenia, more than 100 countries reached a breakthrough at the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the Convention on Biological Diversity, adopting the Yerevan Pathway to speed up action on biodiversity. The agreement came after roughly twelve hours of marathon negotiations that stretched from Friday night into Saturday morning, signaling a renewed commitment to halt and reverse the loss of nature by 2030. The pathway will guide national efforts over the next four years.
These intense negotiations were driven by a strong desire to fill gaps identified in the global report on biodiversity status, while also addressing conflicting positions on how to finance the needed conservation work. Delegates from the 100‑plus parties reviewed over a hundred proposals, exchanging data and best practices. The final vote was taken under the stern glare of the Yerevan city skyline and ended with delegates bursting into applause when the COP17 President, Armenia’s environment minister Hambardzum Matevosyan, used the gavel to signal the adoption of the key decisions.
Cop17 marks the first comprehensive test of the Kunming‑Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which was adopted in 2022 and set 23 science‑based targets to curb biodiversity loss by 2030. The Yerevan Pathway is intended to support countries in meeting those targets during the crucial final four years. However, a number of parties highlighted that the framework’s ambition outpaces the current funding levels and the availability of proven conservation technologies.
Despite the progress, debates continued over several contentious issues. Some governments argued that biodiversity financing mechanisms, including the proposed Green Fund, must receive an immediate and substantial boost. Others raised concerns about the remaining subsidies that incentivize destructive practices such as industrial logging and palm‑oil plantations. Scientific evidence on the urgency of action was also a point of disagreement, with a handful of parties demanding more rigorous data before committing to new conservation commitments.
Hambardzum Matevosyan, COP17 President, praised the scope of the adopted agenda and the closure of previously identified gaps.
“I think we’ve achieved more than we could have expected in terms of the diversity of the agenda items, in terms of the importance of those items for many countries and parties, and in terms of the items that were anticipated for a long time that have managed to be approved and adopted.”
Astrid Schomaker, executive secretary of the secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, added that the adoption of the Yerevan Pathway is a pivotal step toward concrete action by 2030.
“It is wonderful that we have faced up to the gaps identified in the global report. We have adopted the Yerevan Pathway, and now we need to follow this pathway towards 2030.”
The agreement body also endorsed a first global biodiversity progress review and a next‑phase resource mobilization strategy. Nations committed to report on progress toward the 23 targets, while the conference called for new financial flows to include a blend of public, private, and philanthropic funds aimed at scaling up conservation and sustainable use initiatives.
Central to the Yerevan Pathway are four action pillars. Stronger national biodiversity strategies are to be revised and integrated into domestic policies. Enhanced monitoring systems, supported by satellite and sensor technologies, will help track habitat loss, species declines, and restoration outcomes. Increased financing, through the Green Fund and other mechanisms, will address the pay‑gap that keeps many conservation projects stalled. Lastly, technology transfer and capacity‑building programmes will link developed and developing states to ensure equitable access to conservation innovations.
Inclusive participation remains a hallmark of the pathway. It calls for whole‑of‑government coordination and the active engagement of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, women, and youth in decision‑making processes. The decision highlights how these groups bring essential on‑ground knowledge and stewardship traditions that can accelerate species and ecosystem protection.
In a related note, the conference voted to host the next Conference of the Parties (COP18) in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, in 2028, signaling a continued focus on biodiversity governance across the globe.
Implementation of the Yerevan Pathway is expected to unfold in several stages over 2026‑2030. Governments will need to develop and submit national biodiversity action plans that outline specific targets, funding sources, and timeframes. Monitoring frameworks will evolve to use common indicators so that progress at field sites can be compared across countries. Financing agencies will pilot blended‑finance models that combine grants, loans, and private investments, while technology hubs will disseminate best practices through online portals and regional workshops.
The collective outcomes of COP17 illustrate how sustained diplomatic effort, even amid disagreement, can produce concrete pathways that link global commitments to actionable national strategies. By leveraging finance, technology, and indigenous knowledge, the Yerevan Pathway seeks to turn the ambition of the Kunming‑Montreal Framework into measurable gains for biodiversity worldwide.
