The Belmont Forum recently participated in the Twenty-seventh meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA-27). The Forum hosted a side event titled “Integrating Biodiversity Restoration, Animal Welfare, and One Health: From Guidelines to Action and Evaluation.” This event highlighted the integration of biodiversity, climate, and health within the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), building on the Global Action Plan on Biodiversity and Health (GAPBH) adopted at COP16.
During the session, the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) shared insights from its Climate-Environment-Health transdisciplinary science program, which includes multilateral projects across 15 countries in the Americas. IAI also presented a forthcoming project focused on advancing science and technical cooperation for harmonized environmental indicators that link human health and biodiversity through a One Health approach. This initiative will incorporate satellite image analysis to support GAPBH implementation.
The Born Free Foundation and the World Federation for Animals previewed new guidance to assist governments in translating the GAPBH into practical measures. This tool offers policy recommendations, case studies, and best practices, demonstrating how addressing animal health and welfare can benefit biodiversity conservation, food systems, zoonotic disease prevention, antimicrobial resistance, and biodiversity-climate-health synergies.
The Smithsonian Institution and IUCN partners discussed how wildlife conservation translocations contribute to KMGBF Targets 2 and 4. They emphasized the need for integrated approaches that link wildlife health, welfare, and conservation, sharing examples like the IUCN Conservation Translocation Specialist Group guidelines. Collaborative work in Kenya was also highlighted, exploring how available wildlife data can be translated into national indicators to strengthen policy with science-based guidance.
This session brought together governments, scientists, and civil society to explore how harmonized indicators, One Health approaches, and species restoration can collectively accelerate the implementation of the GAPBH and the KMGBF, moving from guidance to action and fostering evaluation.
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