Berlin Urban Nature Pact

The Berlin Urban Nature Pact (Pact) is an initiative by a number of cities building on and partnering with the Edinburgh Process in an ongoing, comprehensive consultation process for cities, local and regional authorities around the world that are ready to lead the transition towards implementation of bold biodiversity action. The Pact seeks to halt and reverse biodiversity loss to put nature on a path to recovery for the benefit of people and the planet in cities worldwide by 2030. It builds on the 2020 Edinburgh Declaration and the 2022 Montreal Pledge, and focuses on the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and renewed Plan of Action on Subnational Governments, Cities and Other Local Authorities for Biodiversity (2023-2030).

Background - A Pact by Cities for Cities

The alarming loss of biodiversity poses an imminent threat to urban environment, infrastructures, value chains, economies as well as health and well-being. Spurring the necessary transformational change globally requires immediate, bold and inspirational action on the local level. Cities, local and regional authorities already play a key role in driving local action and are uniquely positioned to step up action and do their part in reversing biodiversity loss, as demonstrated in the Edinburgh Process for Subnational and Local Governments on the development of the GBF and the renewed Plan of Action of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

In 2021, the City of Berlin initiated the Berlin Urban Nature Pact to be the next milestone towards the implementation of the Edinburgh Declaration, the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework and the Montreal Pledge. The final Pact sets out 6 implementation principles that translate the Edinburgh Process’ proposed Plan of Action into a sum of ambitious and measurable targets of 7 overarching target areas, which signatories will state and report on in the CBD-recognized CitiesWithNature Action Platform.

What’s in it?

Implementation Principles

The Pact is accompanied by a set of 6 implementation principles that safeguard the effective implementation of the Pact’s targets. The signatories will lead the path towards a nature-positive urban century and commit to the following principles for the implementation of inspirational key actions by 2030:

Commitment to action & ambition

Link to & enhance policy & governance frameworks & financing for biodiversity

Stepwise implementation: Berlin Pact Action Plan with SMART Targets

Equal & just co-creation with local initiatives & stakeholders

Capacity building & collaboration of cities

Monitoring & reporting

What’s in it?

Target Areas

The Pact sets out 7 target areas that translate the Edinburgh Process’ proposed Plan of Action into ambitious and measurable targets covering the following key topics of biodiversity action.

Signatories will lead the path towards a nature-positive urban century and commit to a minimum of 15 out of 28 targets of the following target areas by 2030:

7 Target Areas of the Pact

Green infrastructure, trees & forests

Blue infrastructure & water management

Food & agriculture

Education & nature experience

Soil health

Co-habitation

Species & habitats

The Pact within CitiesWithNature

The Pact Signatory Cities will state and track the progress towards their Pact commitments on the CitiesWithNature Action Platform, setting inspiring examples of bold action for other cities to follow. CitiesWithNature is a unique initiative that recognizes and enhances the value of nature in and around cities across the world. Its Action Platform is closely tied to the engagement of cities and regions in the CBD process and is recognized by the CBD in the Plan of Action on Cities and Other Local Authorities for Biodiversity (2023-2030), as the place where cities will monitor and report on their voluntary commitments to national and global biodiversity targets.

Founded by ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) along with the support of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), UNEP and other international partners, CitiesWithNature aims to fully integrate nature into urban planning and development as well as enabling collective and large-scale action to protect the biodiversity in and around cities to prevent irreversible loss and damage to the natural systems we depend on.

History and timeline

In an initial consultation phase in late 2021 to early 2022, ICLEI, the City of Berlin (SenMVKU) and the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation organized a couple of workshops with about 10 European cities to explore the potential of the initiative and to draft the Pact. From late 2022 until mid-2023, input from more than 30 cities located across the globe has been collected in the second consultation phase to make the Pact relevant and applicable to different contexts worldwide.

The consultation process culminated late-2023 in two global introduction and discussion events of the final draft Pact for the cities which have been engaged in the process and development of the Pact. In total, about 90 cities worldwide have been involved in the process.

2021/2022

Edinburgh Declaration

Global Biodiversity Framework and Renewed Plan of Action

Montreal Pledge

2023

Berlin Urban Nature Pact

2024

Signing process and launch event at United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP16) in Colombia

towards 2030

Action Plans ready

Implementation Phase

Stocktaking (2030)

post 2030

Decision on the next steps and continuation of the Pact

2021

Edinburgh Declaration

The Way Forward

During the consultation phase in late 2023, ICLEI, the City of Berlin and the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation organized workshops across the globe to explore the potential of the initiative and to draft the Pact. More than 30 of over 90 involved cities participated actively in these consultations. The input from these cities was collected and makes the Pact relevant and applicable to different contexts worldwide.

The current introduction phase, January 2024 – June 2024, will establish a guidance documentation to accompany and supplement the final Pact document. A roadmap for events as well as means to inform interested stakeholders and administrations will be established, and a coordination office will be set-up by the City of Berlin. The signatory phase will start from June 2024 onwards, to eventually culminate in an official signing event at the CBD COP-16 and a follow-up period in which cities can join the Pact to become official signatories.