Investing in the Nexus of Climate and Biodiversity at the Urban Scale

The UNFCCC and the CBD have both achieved considerable success in mainstreaming finance and urban issues into their respective COPs. At COP27, the first-ever COP Ministerial Meeting on Urbanization and Climate Change was convened. Furthermore, the decision to establish a loss and damage fund at COP27 was a step towards financing climate justice and solidarity. CBD COP15, on the other hand, adopted the landmark Global Biodiversity Framework, which includes Target 12; the first global target on conserving and planning green and blue spaces in urban areas, and endorsed the Plan of Action on Subnational Governments, Cities and Other Local Authorities for Biodiversity. Finance also played a key role at COP15, with requests for the Global Environment Facility to set up the GBF Fund to ensure an adequate, predictable and timely flow of funds for the protection and restoration of biodiversity.

Yet, experts agree that while exemplary programs exist to support Target 12, overall funding of urban NbS is insufficient. According to the State of Finance for Nature report, 2023, the total annual finance flows to NbS in 2022 were roughly US$200 billion, with urban infrastructure receiving just 0.3% of overall spending. Meanwhile, average annual climate finance flows reached almost USD 1.3 trillion in 2021/2022, reflecting only 1% of the global GDP.

Traditionally, efforts to confront climate change and biodiversity loss have been addressed as separate and distinct, as shown by the divergence in funding for both crises. However, considering the synergistic relationship between climate and biodiversity, there is a need to link the two agendas at the local level and scale up financing to implement both urban NbS and climate action. This underscores the importance of engaging with the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) in order to enhance cooperation with subnational governments in the planning, financing, implementation, and monitoring of climate and biodiversity strategies. Moreover, this means aligning countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs), and Locally Determined Contributions (LDCs), with a view to localize implementation and maximise impact.

This event will highlight cooperation among UN agencies in investing in synergies of climate and biodiversity at the urban scale. The first part of the session will include 5 minutes of opening remarks, followed by a keynote speech to explain how these two agendas are connected (15 mins). A panel discussion (60 mins) will follow, featuring representatives of UN agencies that will share their experiences and showcase success stories in scaling and implementing green and inclusive financial systems. This will be followed by a 10-minute Q&A with the audience.