Guyana is set to lead a coalition of world leaders in a bold attempt to halt global environmental decline through the establishment of the Global Biodiversity Alliance, which will be formally launched at a summit in Georgetown from July 23–25.
The inaugural Global Biodiversity Alliance Summit, to be held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, will bring together heads of state, scientists, Indigenous leaders and innovators. The aim is to galvanise international cooperation, secure measurable commitments, and develop solutions to protect 30% of the world’s land and oceans by 2030 – a target commonly known as 30×30.
Nearly 200 countries pledged support for the goal during the United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP15) in Montreal in 2022. However, progress has since stalled, with mounting evidence that most governments are falling behind.
President Irfaan Ali meeting United Nations Secretary General in New York last September. (UN Photo/Even Schneider)
According to the United Nations’ Protected Planet Report 2024, countries would need to safeguard an area of land equal to the combined size of Brazil and Australia, and a marine area larger than the Indian Ocean, to meet the 30×30 target.
Weak progress on nature financing and stalled subsidy reforms, which could help mitigate climate change, were cited among the chief challenges at COP16 in Colombia last year.
The Guyana summit aims to address these issues by launching new financial tools to mobilise investment in biodiversity. These will include debt-for-nature swaps – where national debt is exchanged for conservation commitments – and biodiversity bonds to raise capital for nature-positive projects.
Additionally, the Alliance will work toward a global taxonomy for sustainable economic activities to help guide biodiversity-focused investment strategies.
At the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York last year, President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali announced that the Alliance would also establish a market for biodiversity credits.
Biodiversity credits are certificates representing verified, measurable positive impacts on nature, such as restoring ecosystems, conserving wildlife, or promoting sustainable land use. Unlike carbon credits, they do not offset environmental damage but instead reward direct contributions to biodiversity.
“These are real solutions that Guyana is putting forward to address the global problem of biodiversity loss. We do not lecture; we lead by example without arrogance,” President Ali said in his speech to the UN General Assembly last year.
He noted that according to the World Wildlife Fund, Guyana is one of the world’s most important countries for biodiversity density, straddling two of the richest biodiversity zones, the Guiana Shield and the Amazon.
“As a country, we are dedicated to the preservation of this vital global asset,” Dr Ali said, as he saluted the Indigenous Peoples of Guyana, the Amerindians, “who are the foremost stewards of this great natural heritage.”
Guyana has committed to doubling its protected areas by December 2025 and achieving the global biodiversity target of 30% by 2030.
Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, the key architect of Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), said the country’s success in forest carbon finance had paved the way for a similar approach in biodiversity markets.
“Given our success with forest carbon-related financing, we’re now trying to see if the same approach could be used in biodiversity financing,” Jagdeo said at a press conference earlier this month.
Under the LCDS, Guyana has secured more than US$1 billion for forest conservation, including US$250 million from Norway and US$750 million from US oil company Hess Corporation. Its rainforests store over 19.5 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide, and 15% of those earnings have been directed to Indigenous communities for sustainable development.
The Alliance summit will similarly prioritise the voices of local and Indigenous communities, particularly those residing in areas rich in biodiversity. Their traditional knowledge will inform the development of a suite of biodiversity indicators – ecological, socio-economic, and governance-based – to assess conservation impact.
These indicators will feed into a proposed “Gross Biodiversity Power” index, designed to track progress, evaluate impact, and ensure accountability. A key component of this will be the “Global Biodiversity Product” – a measure of tangible achievements in habitat restoration, species recovery, and improved ecosystem services.
Through these initiatives, Guyana hopes to provide the international community with a model for tracking and valuing biodiversity efforts, while also setting global standards for conservation outcomes.
By launching the Alliance, Guyana aims not only to convene global leadership but to catalyse transformative action to restore ecosystems, secure sustainable livelihoods, and redefine humanity’s relationship with nature.
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