Global environmental leaders gather Monday in Cali, Colombia to assess the world91裸聊视频檚 plummeting biodiversity levels and commitments by countries to protect plants, animals and critical habitats.

The two-week United Nations Biodiversity Conference, or COP16, is a follow-up to the 2022 Montreal meetings where 196 countries signed a historic global treaty to protect biodiversity.

The accord includes 23 measures to halt and reverse nature loss, including putting 30% of the planet and 30% of degraded ecosystems under protection by 2030.

91裸聊视频淲e hope that (COP16) will be an opportunity for countries to get to work and focus on implementation, monitoring and compliance mechanisms that then have to be developed in their countries and in their national plans,91裸聊视频� said Laura Rico, campaign director at Avaaz, a global activism nonprofit.

A real threat to biodiversity loss

All evidence shows dramatic decline in species abundance and distribution, said Linda Krueger, director of biodiversity at The Nature Conservancy.

91裸聊视频淎 lot of wild species have less room to live, and they91裸聊视频檙e declining in numbers,91裸聊视频� Krueger said. 91裸聊视频淎nd we also see rising extinction rates. Things that we haven91裸聊视频檛 even discovered yet are blinking out.91裸聊视频�

The world is experiencing its largest loss of life since the dinosaurs, with around 1 million plant and animal species now threatened with extinction, according to the United Nations Environment Programme.

In the Amazon rainforest, threats to biodiversity include the expansion of the agricultural frontier and road networks, deforestation, forest fires and drought, says Andrew Miller, advocacy director at Amazon Watch, an organization that protects the rainforest.

91裸聊视频淵ou put all of that together and it91裸聊视频檚 a real threat to biodiversity,91裸聊视频� Miller said.

Global wildlife populations have plunged on average by 73% in 50 years, according to the WWF and the Zoological Society of London biennial Living Planet report this month.

The report said Latin America and the Caribbean saw 95% average declines in recorded wildlife populations.

Indigenous communities key to biodiversity protection

Indigenous people are on the front lines of protecting biodiversity and fighting against climate change, putting their lives at great risk, said Miller of Amazon Watch.

91裸聊视频淎 lot of discourse has been given about the voices of local communities 91裸聊视频� Indigenous peoples really playing a key role,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淪o that91裸聊视频檚 one of the things that we91裸聊视频檒l be looking for at COP16.91裸聊视频�

Indigenous peoples hold the solutions to combat the climate change and biodiversity crises, Rico said.

91裸聊视频淭hey91裸聊视频檙e who have been taking care of the land, healing the land through their governance systems, their care systems and their ways of life,91裸聊视频� she said. 91裸聊视频淪o 91裸聊视频� it91裸聊视频檚 fundamental that the COP recognizes, promotes and encourages the legalization of their territories.91裸聊视频�

In Colombia91裸聊视频檚 capital, Bogota, the head of an Amazon Indigenous organization said the region91裸聊视频檚 Indigenous people have been preparing for months for COP16.

91裸聊视频淭his is a great opportunity to make the impact that we need to demonstrate to all the actors that come from other countries the importance of Indigenous peoples for the world,91裸聊视频� said Jose Mendez, secretary of the National Organization of the Indigenous Peoples of the Amazon.

91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 no secret to anyone that we 91裸聊视频� are at risk right now,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淭he effects that we are currently experiencing due to climate change, the droughts that the country is experiencing, the Amazon River has never gone through a drought like the current one. 91裸聊视频� This is causing many species to become extinct.91裸聊视频�

Nature can recover

Colombia91裸聊视频檚 environment minister Susana Muhamad, who is presiding over COP16, told local media this month that one of the conference91裸聊视频檚 main objectives is to deliver the message that 91裸聊视频渂iodiversity is as important, complementary and indispensable as the energy transition and decarbonization.91裸聊视频�

Part of Colombia91裸聊视频檚 first ever leftist government, Muhamad cautioned last year91裸聊视频檚 World Economic Forum about the risks of continuing an extractive economy that ignores the social and environmental consequences of natural resource exploitation.

Since the 2022 Montreal conference, 91裸聊视频減rogress has been too slow91裸聊视频�, says Eva Zabey, executive director of the coalition Business for Nature.

91裸聊视频淭here91裸聊视频檚 been some progress,91裸聊视频� she said. 91裸聊视频淏ut the headline message is the implementation of the global biodiversity framework is too slow and we need to scale and speed up.91裸聊视频�

91裸聊视频淐OP16 comes at an absolutely critical moment for us to move from targets setting to real actions on the ground,91裸聊视频� Zabey said.

Although biodiversity declines are grim, some environmentalists believe a reversal is possible. 91裸聊视频淲e91裸聊视频檝e had some very successful species reintroductions and we91裸聊视频檝e saved species when we really focus on what is causing their decline,91裸聊视频� said The Nature Conservancy91裸聊视频檚 Krueger.