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Media Statement: “Nature’s Crisis Can Be Reversed with Proven Solutions”

As governments gather for UN Biodiversity Conference CBD-COP17, TNC's Dr. Jeffrey Parrish comments on the need for accelerated ambition in Yerevan

Yerevan, Armenia | October 10, 2026

Bald eagles look on as a rainbow forms above British Columbia's Great Bear Rainforest.
Hope in Nature Bald eagles look on as a rainbow forms above the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia. © Nature United

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“Our planet is in peril. The biodiversity that sustains us is being lost faster than ever, and ecosystems that fuel our health and economies are fraying. Climate impacts are intensifying, while communities around the globe navigate ongoing uncertainty. Today, though these are existential crises, we know more than ever before what works, and we’re seeing courageous and visionary governments step up. The task before us is to turn their leadership and these proven solutions into planetary action by all. Now is our moment.

“That’s why TNC urges parties to prioritize these four actions in Yerevan:

  1. Turn the Global Review of progress into an acceleration agenda to help countries deliver progress on the 2030 biodiversity targets;
  2. Transform our financial systems to mobilize investment at the scale needed to durably support nature and sustainable development;
  3. Integrate biodiversity into infrastructure and development decision-making to ensure economic growth and conservation outcomes advance together;
  4. Strengthen policy frameworks to deliver durable, area-based conservation outcomes.

“Moving the needle on any of these would represent a win for Armenia’s COP Presidency and for the planet we share. More importantly, it would show how international agreements can improve our collective future—helping countries translate CBD-level conservation commitments into tangible progress on the ground for nature, as well as the communities and economies that depend on it.

Taking Action for Nature

See the key policy actions TNC is urging Parties to advance at COP17

Learn more

“From Canada’s support of Indigenous protections to the tropical waters of Belize and Seychelles; and from Mongolia’s grasslands to the vast rainforests of Gabon, we’re seeing policies, sustainable resources and durable financing protect nature where it’s needed most. COP17 is the chance for the world to build on that momentum by helping scale proven solutions so that progress in a few places becomes progress everywhere.

“These efforts are increasingly powered by innovative nature finance mechanisms like debt refinancing projects and Project Finance for Permanence (PFP) initiatives, which secure the funding and commitments to drive durable conservation progress at scale. Science lights our path forward by confirming the importance of conserving the right places, at the right time, in the right way. Our collective future success will be defined not by the sheer acreage of land, fresh water and ocean we protect, but by how well we finance and steward those places and the communities that call them home.

“Mobilizing the resources needed to protect nature, embedding its value in economic decision-making and aligning efforts across borders are challenges no country can tackle alone. At a complex moment, shifting the needle meaningfully on biodiversity recovery will require sustained global cooperation. But the leadership shown by many governments signposts the direction of travel required and offers something invaluable at this moment: hope. The challenge now is to implement those proven approaches with the urgency our own species—and countless others—demand.”

The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more resilient. The Nature Conservancy is working to make a lasting difference around the world in 86 countries and territories (41 by direct conservation impact and 45 through partners) through a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners. For more news, visit our newsroom or follow The Nature Conservancy on LinkedIn.