by Helena Paul (Econexus)
Industry lobbying at the CBD is aimed at preven-ting action that might threaten corporate profits. In 2024, At COP 16 there were twice as many industry lobbyists as at COP 15 and in some cases industry lobbyists outnumbered national delegates:
"There were more lobbyists from agribusiness, fossil fuels, pharmaceuticals, food and beverage processing and that brought the total of industry delegates to 1,261. Quite a few were registered as delegates with countries [...] rather than as repre-sentatives of their industries. Food and agriculture companies such as Nestlé and Cargill nearly doubled their attendees [in 2024] to 33." (Source: https://desmog.com)
Much of the lobbying is aimed at avoiding real action on biodiversity loss and climate change. For example, it may promote carbon offsets rather than genuine emission reductions, and ‘afforestation’, often in the form of monoculture tree plantations, frequently of alien, sometimes invasive species such as fast-growing, genetically modified eucalyptus, rather than genuine protection of forests.
These activities can make industry look as if it is taking positive action - and they also yield profits. For example, eucalyptus is used for the production of paper, construction materials and biomass as well as for generating carbon credits. (Source: https://carboncredits.com)
So it will be interesting to see how many industry lobbyists are present at COP17, which parties host them in their delegations, and what they focus on.