Pamela McElwee at the 16th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Cali, Columbia. Photo: Courtesy of Pamela McElwee.
Pamela McElwee, professor in the Department of Human Ecology and affiliate of Rutgers Climate Energy Institute, was the lone Rutgers representative at the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity, when ended on November 2 in Cali, Columbia.
Rutgers has been an observer organization since 2022 and McElwee participated in three formal side events, including one organized by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) on upcoming assessments. IPBES is the key scientific assessment body providing scientific insights to the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Participating in this IPBES event was salient given McElwee is co-chair of the nexus assessment on the interlinkages between biodiversity, water, food, health and climate change, which is set to be adopted by countries at the IPBES11 plenary in Windhoek, Namibia, in December 2024. McElwee also presented at a press conference organized by IPBES and UNESCO on biodiversity, food, health and culture alongside Chef Mauro Colagreco, a 3-star Michelin chef who is the first UNESCO ambassador for biodiversity.
McElwee was also part of a panel on the Montpellier Process, a new initiative from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) to provide science-policy advice to governments on reforming food systems.
Pamela McElwee is captured on the monitors while speaking at COP16 in Cali, Colombia.
Some of the key decisions adopted at the COP16 meeting include how to better address the linkages between biodiversity and health and climate change, as well as better supporting the inclusion of Indigenous peoples in the work of the convention.
“Governments often treat biodiversity, climate and pollution as individual issues addressed by siloed ministries, but there are so many interconnections,” noted McElwee. “The research community has really stressed the need to address all these issues in an interlinked way, such as ensuring that money to finance a climate transition to low carbon energy is also going to biodiversity-supportive measures or making the case for more mainstreaming of biodiversity to get health wins, such as avoiding the next zoonotic pandemic.”
McElwee added, “Now that the COP16 meeting has concluded with strong statements about how to meet both climate and biodiversity goals through nature-positive land and sea management that involves strong participation of affected communities, such as Indigenous peoples, it will be up to research organizations like Rutgers to help put these statements into action.”
