As the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity’s 17th summit opens in Yerevan, Armenia, on Oct. 19, what’s at stake for Africa? In 2022, parties signed the Kunming-Montreal Biodiversity Framework, agreeing to maintain, restore, and substantially increase the area of natural ecosystems and end human-induced extinction of threatened species; to sustainable use of biodiversity; to fair and equitable sharing of both monetary and non-monetary benefits derived from genetic resources; and to establish adequate means to implement the framework — including finance, scientific cooperation and building capacity of all parties. The summit, which runs through Oct. 30, marks the halfway point to the deadlines for a first set of 23 action-oriented global targets. The progress report is not encouraging: Fewer than half of countries say they are on track to meet their self-designed biodiversity targets. “The report shows that many of the critical elements of progress, including finance, capacity, cooperation and data — are still missing in action,” U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said in a press release accompanying the organization’s State of Biodiversity Action report. Three of the world’s “megadiverse” countries are in Africa: The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Madagascar and South Africa make the list of 17 countries that are each home to at least 5,000 of the world’s plant species that are endemic. None of the three met the initial 2024 deadline for a national biodiversity strategy as set out under Kunming — South Africa still hasn’t submitted an action plan. The headline goal — to see 30% of…This article was originally published on Mongabay

The polished leather of Francisco “Torrinho” Torres’ shoes gleamed as he walked toward the lectern in the plenary chamber of the Pará state legislature in the Brazilian Amazon. The 57-year-old rancher-turned-politician moved unhurriedly as he prepared to deliver a speech that would set in motion a series of events leading to new invasions of the Ituna/Itatá Indigenous Territory. It was June 30, 2026, in what seemed to be a routine session for the state representative from one of Brazil’s largest Amazonian states. Behind his sharp suit and the supportive nods of his agribusiness allies was a track record of environmental fines, a corruption investigation, and land disputes. In a brief speech, Torres defended a bill he’d authored to create a new state-run environmental protection area, APA Bacajaí. He presented the measure as a solution for families struggling to farm and rural families in need of land regulation. Three other state representatives took the stand to support the proposal. They spoke of farmers who had waited decades for land titles, of families unable to access credit without them, and of the uncertainty created by the possibility of an Indigenous land claim. It only took 24 minutes for the chamber to pass the bill into law unanimously. There were no objections and no requests for technical notes — even though it was known that the new 142,400-hectare (about 351,900-acre) reserve would overlap entirely with the Ituna/Itatá Indigenous Territory. The area has been under a land-use protection order since 2011 to safeguard the…This article was originally published on Mongabay