On August 29th, the Environmental Law Program held its first Fall 2018 colloquium, ‘The Convention on Biological Diversity: A Critical Look at Inside Negotiations’ featuring distinguished speaker, Gaute Voigt-Hanssen. Gaute Voigt-Hanssen is a Senior Adviser for the Norwegian Ministry of Climate and the Environment. 

Voight-Hanssen presented an informative and interactive discussion on the UN Convention of Biological Diversity and discussed issues such as the importance of biodiversity, the Convention of Biological Diversity as a framework convention, current negotiations, and future visions. Voigt-Hanssen raised many critical questions regarding possible solutions to biodiversity and discussed the need for numerous sectors to tackle the issues.

Voigt-Hanssen explained that the Convention of Biological Diversity is a framework convention and a legally binding treaty, which also provides room for unforeseen issues that may arise in the future. Voigt-Hanssen also discussed the main elements of convention and explained how its different functions, such as in situ conservation and ex situ conservation, are all part of a systematic approach to protect nature.

Overall, the colloquium was an educational and thought-provoking discussion on the importance of biodiversity.

ED – 9/2/18