A new Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) between the Alpine Convention, the Carpathian Convention, and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was presented at the 7th Conference of the Parties to the Carpathian Convention, which took place in Belgrade, Serbia, from 11 to 13 October.
The new Memorandum of Cooperation builds on the first agreement signed by the three Conventions back in May 2008. It has been updated to reflect the new Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the will of the three Conventions to enhance the synergies between them and their common activities.
The Alpine and the Carpathian Conventions can already look back on many years of successful cooperation in environmental protection and the sustainable development of their respective mountain regions. Each Convention has reciprocal Observer status in the other’s organs, allowing a regular flow of information on current issues and activities. In addition, experts from the respective working groups of the Alpine and Carpathian Conventions exchange on a regular basis and take part in each other’s meetings. Mountain biodiversity has always been an important area of collaboration and several joint events were already organised on this topic in the past years.
The new MoC will support the alignment of the biodiversity activities in the Alps and Carpathians with the new Global Biodiversity Framework. It will also help raise awareness at the global level about the value of mountain biodiversity and the challenges of conserving it – for instance in the context of the review of the CBD’s Programme of Work on Mountain Biodiversity.
The Conventions also intend to implement the MoC through their contributions to global mountain processes such as the “Five Years of Action for the Development of Mountain Regions” (2023-2027) and in exchanges with other mountain regions of the world (such as the Andes and the Hindu Kush Himalaya), to build up the voice of mountains.
“Aligning regional biodiversity protection with action at the global level indeed requires political coordination and, above all, a shared vision. Overall, the new Memorandum of Cooperation will help the Alps and the Carpathians to achieve the global targets, and we aim to be an inspiration for other mountain areas in the world,” said Alenka Smerkolj, Alpine Convention Secretary General after the presentation of the MoC.
