| EFE
Who were “the people” at COP16? Reflections on where “The People’s COP” leaves us
One of the outstanding achievements of the 16th edition of the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16) held in Cali, Colombia was citizen participation. Naming it “The People’s COP”, the national government wanted to send a message to the world that…
Por: Dejusticia | December 17, 2024
One of the outstanding achievements of the 16th edition of the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16) held in Cali, Colombia was citizen participation. Naming it “The People’s COP”, the national government wanted to send a message to the world that it would be an event different from other international negotiation spaces, with the broad and lively involvement of diverse social sectors around nature and life on the planet. Post-COP, we ask ourselves: How was participation at the world’s most important biodiversity event and who were “the people” of “the People’s COP”?
In a sort of sociology and micro-politics reflection of COP16, we propose to reflect on the alternative agendas and contradictions in terms of social and environmental justice that took place outside the international negotiations. Through the eyes of various actors, we will point out that, despite the political and economic opportunities that hosting the Conference brings for a country like Colombia, gaps still persist in the participation of civil society and the recognition of human rights as a central part of the solutions to the crisis caused by the loss of biodiversity.
In addition to the States Parties represented by 170 international delegations gathered in the “blue zone” negotiation venue, according to official figures, COP16 had more than one million visitors in the area open to the public called the “green zone” and more than 40,000 people involved in academic activities, exhibitions and discussions.
Thus, during two weeks parallel to the negotiations, at least two different COPs took place in Cali: (1) that of civil society, which had the opportunity to meet and visibilize old demands regarding the different socio-environmental conflicts that persist in the country; and (2) that of the companies, which did not miss the opportunity to participate in this international event to promote their “corporate social responsibility” projects, at the same time as promoting new businesses linked to the so-called green markets.
The entries in this Newsletter allow us to advance in the characterization of both. First, Camilo Durán shares his article “Reflections on civil society participation and advocacy at COP16”, in which he points out some of the barriers and opportunities that this international space implied for organized civil society. Then, Natalia Escobar and Berta Flores reflect on the presence and economic agenda of the private sector in their article “Biodiverse businesses: the private sector at COP16”. Finally, Nina Chaparro and Andrea Forero offer a way forward to overcome the gaps in participation and social justice through their article “Strengthening civil society as an avenue to environmental governance”.