Trade can support the achievement of a nature-positive global goal to reverse biodiversity loss

A statement by Marco Lambertini, Convenor of the Nature Positive Initiative, arguing for the integration of biodiversity and nature-positive goals into international trade policies, specifically through the World Trade Organization (WTO).

• Over half of the global GDP is at risk due to dependence on nature; the World Economic Forum estimates that $44 trillion of economic value generation is moderately or highly dependent on nature and its services, leaving it exposed to risks from ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss.
• The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted at COP15 in December 2022 by over 190 governments, establishes a nature-positive global goal to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030.
• Nature-positive trade is defined as trade that incentivizes nature-positive practices across the supply chain for all major commodities, including minerals, timber, fish, and agricultural produce. Potential tools to achieve this include reducing the complexity of environmental standards, eliminating perverse subsidies, and lowering tariffs on environmental services and goods.
• While some WTO initiatives show progress—such as the Dialogue on Plastics Pollution (DPP), the Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform (FFSR) initiative, and the Trade and Environmental Sustainability Structured Discussions (TESSD)—the Thirteenth WTO Ministerial Conference (MC13) failed to reach agreements on a roadmap for agricultural negotiations or the second phase of fisheries subsidies negotiations regarding overfishing and overcapacity.
• A critical challenge in transitioning to nature-positive trade is the need to define and aggregate specific metrics globally to measure the gain or loss of nature, a goal the Nature Positive Initiative aims to support through alignment on frameworks and definitions.

APA

Lambertini, M. (2024). Trade can support the achievement of a nature-positive global goal to reverse biodiversity loss. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs. https://tessforum.org/latest/trade-can-support-the-achievement-of-a-nature-positive-global-goal-to-reverse-biodiversity-loss

Chicago

Lambertini, Marco. Trade can support the achievement of a nature-positive global goal to reverse biodiversity loss. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs, 2024. https://tessforum.org/latest/trade-can-support-the-achievement-of-a-nature-positive-global-goal-to-reverse-biodiversity-loss.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Lambertini |first1=Marco |title=Trade can support the achievement of a nature-positive global goal to reverse biodiversity loss |publisher=Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs |date=6 March 2024 |url=https://tessforum.org/latest/trade-can-support-the-achievement-of-a-nature-positive-global-goal-to-reverse-biodiversity-loss |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{lambertini2024trade, author = {Lambertini, Marco}, title = {{Trade can support the achievement of a nature-positive global goal to reverse biodiversity loss}}, publisher = {Forum on Trade, Environment, \& the SDGs}, year = {2024}, month = mar, url = {https://tessforum.org/latest/trade-can-support-the-achievement-of-a-nature-positive-global-goal-to-reverse-biodiversity-loss}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }