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Sevan National Park in Armenia is home to a unique ecosystem and serves as an important breeding ground for several bird species listed in Armenia’s Red Book, including the Great Cormorant and the Armenian Gull. Photo: © Berta Martirosyan
We tend to think of nature as something development must protect. We must also recognize that human life and development itself depend on it.
Forests protect soil and water. Healthy landscapes sustain agriculture and livelihoods. Mountain ecosystems regulate water far downstream.
When these systems deteriorate, the consequences reach far beyond the environment. Economies come under pressure. Communities become more vulnerable. Human health and lives are put at risk and so is the future of our children.
Nature is the foundation of life, security and development.
That is why COP17, the 17th UN Biodiversity Conference of the Parties, matters. As countries gather in Yerevan, Armenia, in October 2026, they will review collective progress towards the 23 targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework for the first time.
The challenge is clear. We have the commitments to protect nature. Now we must turn them into action and results.
Armenia’s COP17 Presidency is calling for stronger action for nature, with UNDP as one of the key partners in translating ambition into results - from protecting Lake Sevan’s unique ecosystem and addressing land degradation, to developing Armenia’s first Biodiversity Finance Plan, as part of a global UNDP effort in mobilizing finance for nature in 130 countries.
Importantly, biodiversity challenges transcend national borders. So must the efforts to protect it.
Rivers cross borders. Wildlife moves across different landscapes. Mountain ecosystems sustain communities far beyond the highlands.
In Central Asia, UNDP is working with countries and communities across the region to protect biodiversity, improve the management of natural resources, and strengthen livelihoods that depend on healthy ecosystems.
In the transboundary Ferghana Valley, spanning Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, UNDP has supported climate-resilient development, risk-informed policymaking and cooperation around shared environmental challenges. In Kyrgyzstan's Western Tian Shan, UNDP has supported a landscape approach linking biodiversity conservation with sustainable management of land and forests, ecological connectivity and local livelihoods, including cooperation to protect snow leopard ecosystems.
The significance of biodiversity protection goes beyond conservation. Shared ecosystems create shared interests.
Managing them responsibly protects livelihoods, strengthens resilience and opens opportunities for cooperation. It helps countries address environmental and economic challenges that none can manage alone.
This is why biodiversity cannot remain a niche environmental concern. Governments invest in roads, energy systems and digital networks because they are essential to development.
Nature deserves the same strategic priority.
COP17 offers a unique opportunity to move nature to the center of economic and development decisions, underpinned by adequate financial resources.
We see encouraging dynamics. Yerevan Biodiversity COP17 is already delivering promising results, with the launch of the New Species Recovery Alliance and its $500 million pledge, uniting the Bezos Earth Fund and eight partners to prevent extinctions and accelerate species recovery worldwide.
We, now need to build on the COP17 momentum, ensuring that commitments translate into lasting action for nature, sustainable development and a more peaceful, resilient future for all.
By Ivana Živković, UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Regional Director for Europe and the CIS