The OECD is participating in the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP17), taking place in Yerevan, Armenia from 19–30 October 2026. COP17 will be a key milestone, marking the first global review of collective progress towards the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and providing an opportunity to assess progress, strengthen policy action and advance efforts to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030.
Explore our programme to find out more about OECD participation in CBD COP17 sessions and events, and discover related OECD work on biodiversity.
OECD at the UN Biodiversity Conference 2026 (CBD COP17)
- Date
- 19-30 October 2026
- Location
- Yerevan, Armenia
About
Engaging with the OECD at CBD COP17
- Biodiversity financing for the implementation of the GBF: Results and lessons learned from the development of National Biodiversity Finance Plans
13:15 (AMT) | Room Parz - Contact Group 4
Hosts: IUCN | UNDP-BIOFIN |Netherlands | Belgium | Finland | Luxembourg | OECD
This session will share experiences and lessons learned from Belgium, Finland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands in developing National Biodiversity Finance Plans using the UNDP BIOFIN methodology, alongside insights from Kazakhstan and other developing countries participating in the BIOFIN programme. It will explore challenges, opportunities and innovative approaches to mobilising public and private finance, including biodiversity credits, nature-based solutions and the reform of subsidies harmful to biodiversity. The session will also present findings from a recent OECD report, Mobilising Public and Private Finance for Biodiversity: Good Practices in Unlocking Capital for Nature, and highlight lessons that can support resource mobilisation for the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework.
OECD speaker: Edward Perry, Biodiversity Policy Analyst, Environment Directorate
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- Climate-smart, conservation agriculture as a tool for biodiversity preservation in the Eastern Partnership Countries
13:15 (AMT) | Room Gyumri - Contact Group 6
Hosts: RECC | GIZ | OECD
This session will showcase field-tested climate-smart agricultural practices that can support agricultural biodiversity, including integrated pest management, efficient irrigation, the use of climate-resilient and local varieties and biodiversity-friendly land management. Drawing on experience from across the Eastern Partnership and demonstration work in the South Caucasus, the event will highlight practical approaches and evidence that can contribute to progress towards the Global Biodiversity Framework, including Targets 4, 10 and 11. It will also highlight the role of local varieties and the knowledge of farming communities in conserving agricultural biodiversity and supporting ecosystems.
OECD speaker: Olga Olson, Policy Analyst, Environment Directorate
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- Official OECD led side event on Scaling biodiversity incentives and finance: Tracking progress and accelerating action
13:15 (AMT) | Lori - Meeting Room 4 - Block 2, 3rd Floor
Hosts: OECD | Armenia | European Commission (EC) | France | United Kingdom | Colombia
This side event will bring together perspectives from the OECD, Armenia, the European Commission, France, the United Kingdom, the Asian Development Bank and others to showcase the latest evidence and policy developments on biodiversity finance and biodiversity-positive incentives. Discussions will explore trends in public and private biodiversity finance, international development co-operation and emerging instruments and approaches across the real economy and financial sector. The event will also highlight good practices, practical experiences and lessons learned in scaling up biodiversity finance and designing incentives that support the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, while identifying opportunities for strengthened international collaboration and accelerated action towards the 2030 goals and targets.
OECD speakers:
Kumi Kitamori, Deputy Director, Environment Directorate
Edward Perry, Policy Analyst, Environment Directorate
Juan Casado Asensio, Policy Analyst, Development Co-operation Directorate
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- Trade and biodiversity in focus: Policy pathways to delivering the KMGBF targets
18:15 (AMT) | Talin - Side-event Room 1
Hosts: UNCTAD | CBD | OECD
Building on work by UNCTAD, the CBD Secretariat and the OECD, this side event will explore the links between trade, biodiversity and the bioeconomy and consider how trade policies can support implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. It will present evidence, data, tools and approaches on trade-biodiversity linkages, including insights from OECD work on the environmental outlook and on-going work on trade and biodiversity. The event will also discuss opportunities, risks and policy pathways for better aligning trade and biodiversity while supporting sustainable development. The event will provide a platform for exchange among governments, international organisations, the private sector, academia, Indigenous Peoples and local communities and civil society on practical approaches to supporting biodiversity conservation, sustainable use and equitable benefit-sharing.
OECD speaker: Shunta Yamaguchi, Senior Policy Analyst, Environment Directorate
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- Yerevan Roundtable on Rights-Based and Inclusive Conservation Funding
16:00–19:00 (AMT)
Hosts: Synchronicity Earth | Forest Peoples Programme | CBD Women’s Caucus | Global Greengrants Fund
This Roundtable will explore what rights-based and inclusive biodiversity finance looks like in practice, particularly whether funding initiatives are shifting decision-making power, improving access to resources and delivering tangible results for rights-holders. The discussion will also examine the drivers of progress, persistent challenges and how different initiatives can learn from one another and support each other’s efforts. The Roundtable will be structured around brief contributions to encourage an open exchange, drawing on participants’ experiences and perspectives.
OECD speaker: Dominique Blaquier, Policy Analyst, Development Co-operation Directorate
- Business and Biodiversity Forum
COP 17 Blue Zone
Hosts: Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) | Armenia
The seventh Business and Biodiversity Forum will provide a platform to move the conversation from ambition to implementation. Building on the findings of both the Global Review and the IPBES Business and Biodiversity Assessment, the Forum will examine how governments, businesses and financial institutions can work together to accelerate implementation of the KMGBF and address the systemic barriers that continue to hinder progress. Rather than focusing solely on commitments, the Forum will emphasize practical solutions, transformative business leadership and the enabling conditions required to embed biodiversity into corporate strategies, investment decisions, value chains and economic systems. Through this dialogue, the Forum aims to demonstrate how business can become a driving force in achieving the objectives of the KMGBF, particularly in relation to Targets 14, 15, 16, 18 and 19.
OECD speaker: Kumi Kitamori, Deputy Director, Environment Directorate
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- From a to c: Delivering on Target 19 through private finance "Moving to business unusual for biodiversity finance"
18:15 (AMT) | Talin - Side-event Room 1
Hosts: Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg | OECD | FMO | FSD
This session will bring together businesses, financial institutions, governments, development co-operation and civil society to share practical approaches for, and successes in, scaling up biodiversity-positive investments such as nature-based solutions. The discussion is built around the three entry points identified in the OECD report Scaling Up Private Action for Nature: strengthening enabling environments, promoting private sector engagement and mobilising private finance. Speakers will highlight the innovative financial instruments, partnerships and policy incentives needed to shift biodiversity finance to “business unusual”. In a highly interactive format, six pitches from governments, international banks, local implementers, companies and others will anchor the discussion, covering both successful cases and those still running into barriers. The session aims to move from high-level commitments to scalable capital flows for nature, with partnerships at the heart of these efforts.
OECD speakers: Dominique Blaquier, Policy Analyst, Development Co-operation Directorate
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- Finance and Biodiversity Day
Room CG3 (Blue Zone)
Hosts: Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) | Armenia
The Finance and Biodiversity Day will bring together a globally representative group of finance sector participants to turn the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework into investable opportunities. Shaped by recent private sector dialogues, this year's program focuses on closing the gap between commitment and implementation: building credible pipelines of nature-smart projects, providing policy certainty in high-biodiversity-risk markets, developing decision-useful data, matching instruments to country context, and addressing capacity constraints.
OECD speaker: Jaime de Bourbon de Parme, Director, Environment Directorate
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- Financing Gender-Responsive Biodiversity Action: Advancing Women’s Access to Funds
16:50 (AMT)
Hosts: CBD Women | Global Forest Coalition
This panel will focus on financing the implementation of GPA Outcome 3, particularly Objective 3.6 on adequate human and financial resources for gender-responsive implementation of the KMGBF. The discussion will examine persistent inequalities in access to biodiversity finance and explore how gender-responsive budgeting, targeted funding and direct-access mechanisms can help ensure resources reach grassroots women’s organisations, Indigenous Peoples, local communities and people of African descent.
OECD speaker: Juan Casado Asensio, Policy Analyst, Development Co-operation Directorate
- From principles to international cooperation: Mobilising biodiversity finance through high-integrity nature credits
18:15 (AMT) | Jermuk - African States meeting room
Hosts: BCA | IAPB | ORG WAITING FOR APPROVAL | OECD
This high-level side event will explore the potential of high-integrity crediting approaches for nature and biodiversity to mobilise private investment towards nature-positive outcomes. It will mark the launch of the Friends of Credits for Nature and Biodiversity, an inclusive government-led platform for international co-operation on high-integrity crediting approaches for nature and biodiversity. The event will also consider how these approaches can connect with National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans, biodiversity finance plans and the GBF monitoring framework, including through credible information on resources mobilised and nature outcomes, while avoiding double counting and ensuring alignment with national priorities, safeguards, transparency and monitoring systems.
OECD speaker: tbc
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- Trade, biodiversity and climate in a changing world order: Unlocking competitiveness, regional integration, and market access for biobased products and services
18:15 (AMT) | Spitak - Side-event Room 2
Hosts: MMA | UNCTAD | WTO | NF | SEI | EMF
This side event will explore how trade, investment and industrial policies can help develop competitive and inclusive bioeconomy markets and strengthen biodiversity-based value chains. Drawing on the work of the Bioeconomy Challenge Market Development and Trade Working Group, discussions will focus on market access, standards and certification, demand creation, market intelligence and regional and international trade co-operation. The event will also consider how policy and regulatory frameworks, procurement, finance and investment can help reduce trade and compliance costs, strengthen market opportunities and support the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
OECD speaker: tbc
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Reach out to us
For more information, please contact Katia Karousakis and Edward Perry of the OECD Environment Directorate.