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Another high-level international environmental meeting kicked off this week as 20,000 government leaders, journalists, activists and celebrities from around the world prepare to land in Glasgow for a major climate summit that begins later this month. The problem it is trying to solve: The rapid collapse of species and systems that collectively sustain life on Earth.

Many leading scientists say the risks at the two meetings are equally high, but the biodiversity crisis is receiving far less attention.

“If the global community continues to see this as a side event and continues to think that climate change is now what it really needs to listen to, it may be too late when they wake up on biodiversity,” said Francis Ogwal. One of the leaders of the working group tasked with shaping an international agreement.

As climate change and biodiversity loss are intertwined with the potential for both win-win solutions and vicious cycles of destruction, should be considered together, scientists say. But their spherical peaks are distinct and one overshadows the other.

“Awareness is not where it should be yet,” said biologist and climate researcher Hans-Otto Pörtner. international research on both issues. He calls them “two existential crises humanity has unleashed on the planet.”

Why is biodiversity important?

Besides any moral reason for humans to care about other species on earth, there are practical reasons as well. At the most basic level, humans rely on nature for their survival.

“The diversity of all plants and all animals actually makes the planet work,” said Anne Larigauderie, an ecologist who chairs a leading intergovernmental panel on biodiversity. “They make sure that we have oxygen in the air, that we have fertile soils.”

If you lose too many players in an ecosystem it will stop working. The average abundance of native species in most major terrestrial biomes has declined by at least 20 percent, mostly since 1900. According to a major report on the state of the world’s biodiversity Dr. Larigauderie’s panel was published by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. An estimated million species are threatened with extinction.

Climate change is only one driver of biodiversity loss. For now, the biggest culprit on land is people destroying their habitats through activities such as farming, mining and logging. There is overfishing in the sea. Other causes include pollution and species that drive away native ones.

“When you have two existential crises at the same time, you can’t just pick one to focus on – you have to tackle both, no matter how hard it may be,” said Brian O’Donnell, director of Campaign for Nature, an advocacy group. “This is equivalent to having a flat tire and a dead battery in your car at the same time. Fix just one and you’ll still be stuck.”

How does it work

This week, environmental officials, diplomats and other observers from around the world gathered online, and a small group gathered in person in Kunming, China for the meeting, the 15th United Nations biodiversity conference.

The United States is the only country, other than the Vatican, that is not a party to the underlying treaty, the Convention on Biological Diversity. Republican opposition. American representatives, as well as scientists and environmental advocates, are on the sidelines of the talks.

Due to the pandemic, the conference was split into two parts. While this virtual part is largely about strengthening political will, the countries will meet again in the spring to endorse a set of goals aimed at tackling the loss of biodiversity in China. Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, the convention’s secretary-general, said the aim would be to adopt a nature pact similar to the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Last year, officials of the world’s nations goals largely not achieved of the previous global agreement on biodiversity in 2010.

“We risk repeating the failures of the past decade” if new commitments are not translated into “effective policies and concrete action,” Mrema said at this week’s meeting.

what’s next

The working outline includes 21 goals that act as a blueprint for reducing biodiversity loss. Many are tangible and measurable, others are more intangible. None of them are easy. In summary, they include:

• Establish a plan across all land and waters of each country to protect pristine areas while making the best decisions about where to carry out activities such as agriculture and mining.

• Ensure wild species are hunted and fished in a sustainable and safe manner.

• Reduce agricultural runoff, pesticides and plastic pollution.

• Use ecosystems to limit climate change by storing planet-warming carbon in nature.

• Reducing subsidies and other financial programs that harm biodiversity by at least $500 billion a year estimated amount that governments spend to support fossil fuels and support potentially harmful agricultural practices.

• Protect at least 30 percent of the planet’s land and oceans by 2030.

This last measure, put forward by environmentalists and a growing number of nations ahead of the conference, received the most attention and resources. Last month, nine philanthropic groups donated $5 billion to the effort, known as 30×30.

“It’s catchy,” said EO Wilson, an influential biologist and professor emeritus at Harvard University. He said he hopes the 30×30 will one day be a step towards protecting half the planet for nature.

Indigenous groups watched with hope and concern. While some welcome the expansion, demanding higher than 30 percent, others fear they will lose the use of their land, as historically has happened in many areas set aside for conservation.

The debate highlights a central tension running through the biodiversity negotiations.

“If this becomes a purely nature conservation plan, it will fail,” said Basile van Havre, who is co-leader with Mr Ogwal, one of the convention’s working groups. “What we need is a blueprint for nature and people.”

While the global human population is still increasing, scientists say transformational change is necessary for the planet to sustain us.

Dr. “We actually need to see every human effort through the lens of biodiversity and nature,” Larigauderie said. Because everyone is connected to nature, “everyone is part of the solution,” he said.