Appendix 3: Main international organisations that have an impact on biodiversity

A wide range of organisations, working in different areas, is undertaking initiatives that are relevant to biodiversity.

UNDP (United Nations Development Programme)

UNDP is the UN’s global development network, an organisation advocating change and connecting (poor) countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. A key UNDP area is energy and environment policy. Through capacity development, knowledge management, policy advice and advocacy, the UNDP helps countries to maintain biodiversity and assists them in its sustainable use.

UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme)

The mission of the UNEP is to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations. Biodiversity is one of the subjects on which it is working and finances studies.

CSD (Commission on Sustainable Development)

The Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) was created in December 1992 to ensure effective follow-up of UNCED (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development) and to monitor and report on implementation of the Earth Summit agreements at the local, national, regional and international levels.

UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development)

UNCTAD is the principal organ of the United Nations General Assembly in the field of trade and development. UNCTAD’s main goals are to maximise the trade, investment and development opportunities of developing countries, and to help them face challenges arising from globalisation and integrate into an equitable position in the world economy. UNCTAD launched the BIOTRADE Initiative (1996 during COP3 of the CBD) with the goal of stimulating trade and investment in biological resources to further sustainable development in line with the three objectives of the CBD.

WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organisation)

WIPO is an international organisation dedicated to promoting the use and protection of works of intellectual property. Due to the strong links recognised by the CBD between conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, and traditional knowledge, a need has arisen to create new ways of protecting traditional knowledge, and to establish access and benefit-sharing mechanisms. The Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore was created in October 2000 to this end.

WTO (World Trade Organisation)

The WTO is the international body dealing with the rules of trade between different nations.

Of particular relevance to the implementation of the CBD are the following agreements:

- the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)

- the Agreement on Agriculture (Agriculture Agreement)

- the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement)

- the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement)

- the Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement).

WHO (World Health Organisation)

The World Health Organisation brings the potentially grave threats to human health to the attention of the international community and takes measures to reduce their impact. As most environmental factors affecting health are closely linked to underlying pressures on the environment, the WHO has increased its focus on supporting measures to incorporate health and environment initiatives into national programmes.

UPOV (International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants)

The objective of the UPOV convention is to encourage innovation in plant breeding by providing exclusive rights for plant breeders in plant varieties that they have developed.