The 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will convene in Yerevan, Armenia, this October for the first global review of collective progress towards the goals and targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF)—the first formal assessment of what has changed since its adoption in 2022. COP17 also comes one year after the launch of the Cali Resource Mobilization Strategy, a global biodiversity finance framework adopted under the CBD targeting at least US $200 billion per year by 2030.


Is your institution attending COP17? Let us know by completing this short form so we can keep you informed of invite-only events and opportunities to contribute to UNEP FI organized activities and panels.


 


What’s at stake for the finance sector at COP17


    

  • The first global review of collective progress towards the GBF including an assessment of implementation of the Resource Mobilization Strategy adopted at the resumed COP16 in Rome in 2025.
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  • Operationalization of the UN Cali Fund moving the benefit-sharing mechanism for digital sequence information from design into implementation.
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  • A GBF Fund pledging event aimed at expanding the Fund’s contributor base beyond sovereign donors and mobilizing additional resources for biodiversity action. If you are interested in this fund, please contact Jessica Smith.
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  • National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) implementation and finance, including how national plans can be translated into investable pipelines suitable for private finance uptake.
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At COP17, UNEP FI will mobilize its network of members and partners to highlight the critical role of finance in protecting and restoring nature. Throughout the conference, UNEP FI will showcase progress on biodiversity finance since the adoption of the GBF, spotlight leading initiatives, commitments and innovations from across the finance sector, and advance dialogue on what is still needed to align global financial flows with biodiversity goals.


Ahead of COP17, UNEP FI and partners are putting out a call to action on high-integrity nature markets to encourage CBD Parties (governments and policymakers) and other actors to promptly establish the policy, regulatory and market conditions needed to unlock investment in time to meet the goals and targets of the GBF. Read the call to action.


Support the call to action – add your organization’s name.


 


Key finance events at COP17:




22 October | 16:45–17:45 (UTC+04:00) | From Commitments to Action: Circular Economy as a Nature-Positive Finance Opportunity


Location: Netherlands Pavilion, Blue Zone


This panel discussion will explore how circular economy business models can help achieve global biodiversity targets by mobilising finance and creating positive incentives for nature-positive investments. Focusing on CBD Targets 18 and 19, speakers from finance, business, and environmental organisations will examine how approaches such as circular waste management, regenerative agriculture, asset refurbishment, leasing, and extending product lifecycles can generate scalable, investable, and measurable biodiversity outcomes.


Please contact Rafael Lopez for more information on attendance.


 


23 October | 13:00–14:00 (UTC+04:00) | Quantifying nature-related risk: Methods and insights


Location: TNFD HIVE, Blue Zone


As organisations move from identifying nature-related dependencies and impacts towards assessing nature-related risks and their financial impacts, a key challenge is turning complex nature data into decision-useful measures of risk. This session will explore emerging approaches for quantifying nature-related physical, transition and systemic risks, drawing on practical experience from organisations and the latest research across the market.


Please contact Rafael Lopez for more information on attendance.


 


25 October | 15:20–16:40 (UTC+04:00) | COP 17 Business and Biodiversity Forum Plenary – Mobilizing Capital for Biodiversity: Aligning Financial Flows and Incentives with the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework


Location: Meridian Expo and Event Centre, Blue Zone


Achieving the goals and targets of the Framework will require both increased financial resources for biodiversity and greater alignment of the financial flows and economic incentives that shape investment and business decisions. The session will explore how governments, development finance institutions, private finance and businesses can work together to mobilize capital, strengthen enabling conditions and redirect financial flows towards activities that support the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.


Please contact Rafael Lopez for more information on attendance.


 


27 October | 13:00–13:45 (UTC+04:00) | Mobilising Resources for Nature: A Showcase of Biodiversity Finance Solutions 

Location: Biodiversity and Finance (B&F) Hub, Blue Zone


As countries work to close the biodiversity finance gap and deliver on Target 19 of the Global Biodiversity Framework, financial institutions have a critical role to play in channelling resources toward nature-positive outcomes. This side-event, co-hosted by the Finance for Biodiversity Foundation, UNEP FI, PRI and the EU Business & Biodiversity Platform brings together a group of diverse financial institutions to present real-world examples of investment vehicles, funds and financial products that work towards generating positive outcomes for nature.


Please contact Rafael Lopez for more information on attendance.


 


Details on more events and sessions will be added here. Please check back soon.


 


Finance Day at COP17


26 October | Finance and Biodiversity Day | Blue Zone


Finance and Biodiversity Day, organized by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), will serve as the finance sector’s dedicated platform at COP17 for aligning capital flows with NBSAPs and translating GBF commitments into investable, bankable action. Bringing together financial institutions, regulators, policymakers and industry leaders, the day will focus on progress to date, while exploring practical solutions, innovative instruments, regulatory developments and collaborative approaches to accelerate finance for biodiversity.


The agenda is as follows:


    

  • 08:30 – 09:00 | Keynotes
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  • 09:00 – 09:30 | Opening remarks | From risks to resilience: aligning finance with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF): Two years after Cali, this session sets the tone for the day by reaffirming the finance sector’s role – public and private – in aligning capital flows with the GBF.
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  • 09:30–10:30 | Panel 1 | Report card: financial system alignment with the Global Biodiversity Framework since COP16: An honest accounting of what has scaled and what has stalled since COP16 in Cali, Colombia.
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  • 10:30–11:45 | Panel 2 | Scaling finance for nature transition: from commitments to nature-smart transition pathways: The panel will explore the emergence of clear market guidance and provide examples of transactions across nature bonds and loans, blue bonds and loans, use of funds, and sustainability-linked financing for nature-related outcomes.
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  • 13:30–14:30 | Panel 3 | Innovative approaches: markets, financial instruments and benefit-sharing mechanisms: This panel asks whether biodiversity and nature finance instruments – including green bonds, sustainability-linked bonds, debt-for-nature swaps, as well as the Cali Fund’s benefit-sharing mechanism, can achieve the necessary levels of standardization, integrity, and accountability.
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  • 14:30–15:30 | Panel 4 | Key sector transitions: financing nature-smart opportunities: A look at how nature-dependent sectors, including agriculture, mining, energy and other land-use intensive industries, can be redirected toward deforestation-free, nature-smart production practices.
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  • 16:00–17:00 | Panel 5 | Insurance, climate risk, and resilience finance for nature: This panel will examine the growing collaboration between insurers, reinsurers, and development finance institutions in scaling climate adaptation and nature resilience finance.
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  • 17:00–18:00 | Panel 6 | Financing critical and underfunded ecosystems and biomes: A session examining how to unlock capital for the ecosystems that remain furthest from sustainable investment today: tropical forests, wetlands, oceans, coastal ecosystems and small island states.
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Related resources



 


FAQs

    

    

                        

                    


                

                    
                


                

                    

                        
UNEP FI is able to support members in attaining organizational accreditation and individual delegate badges for attending COP17. If you are a UNEP FI member and would like support, please complete this short form by 15 September. Please note that UNEP FI cannot guarantee accreditation or delegate badges will be approved and is unable to provide support to non-members. Please do not book flights or make arrangements for attending COP17 until accreditation and delegate badges have been officially received.

                    

                

            

                    


                

                    
                


                

                    

                        
UNEP FI’s COP17 engagement will focus on showcasing progress on biodiversity finance since the adoption of the GBF, identifying the remaining gaps and challenges to aligning financial flows with the framework, and promoting innovative financing mechanisms that can help scale investment in nature.

                    

                

            

                    


                

                    
                


                

                    

                        
UNEP FI members can stay informed through the UNEP FI newsletter, by following UNEP FI on LinkedIn, and by visiting this dedicated COP17 page regularly for the latest updates, announcements and event information. If your institution will be attending COP17, please complete this short form to be added to a dedicated mailing list.

                    

                

            

                    

                    

    


 




More about CBD COP17


The Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is the Convention’s principal decision-making body, bringing together governments and stakeholders to advance global action on biodiversity conservation and sustainable use.


COP17 will focus on assessing progress in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and accelerating action towards its goals and targets. Countries are expected to report on efforts to align their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) with the framework, while participants from governments, the private sector, financial institutions, civil society and international organizations will discuss approaches to mobilizing resources, strengthening implementation, building capacity and supporting nature-positive development. Key topics are expected to include resource mobilization, finance, capacity-building, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of genetic resources.