Meet Focali representatives Jesica Lopéz and Stephen Woroniecki at COP16 in Colombia
Preparations are gearing up for the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP16) to be held in Cali, Colombia, October 21-November 1. It will be the first Biodiversity COP since the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework GBF at COP15 in December 2022 in Montreal, Canada.
The location for the meeting is one of the most biodiverse landscapes in the world and the focus is on how to transform commitments of the GBF into actions on the ground. Parties to the Convention are expected to show the alignment of their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) with the Framework. COP 16 will further develop the monitoring framework and advance resource mobilization for the Global Biodiversity Framework.
At and around COP16 critical discussions will be held across sectors on the challenges and opportunities to reverse biodiversity loss and preserve ecosystems that life on earth depend on. To participate in the discussions, side-events and to report back from COP16 Focali will have two representatives from the network present. Stephen Woroniecki will be part of a team facilitating a multistakeholder dialogue process on how Human Rights Based Approaches can be incorporated into action on climate change and biodiversity loss at different levels of decision-making. Jesica Lopéz will focus on the role of bio-socioeconomies and models to reduce deforestation and be part of a side event on these issues. Jesica and Stephen are further introduced in the Q&A below. More information will be added about the specific activities they will be involved in and you will be able to follow their time at COP16 via reflection posts and vlogs on the Focali Linked In page. In addition to the two Focali representatives other network members will participate at COP16 in other roles, stay tuned for more information about all Focali related activities around COP16.
After COP16 Focali with partners will arrange a post-match analysis to discuss the outcomes, like the expert panel held after COP15 and the panel to follow up one year after the adoption of the GBF. If you have questions, suggestions for collaborations or would like to meet the two Focali representatives going to COP16 welcome to connect with Maria Ölund Project Manager of Focali: maria.olund@wexsus.se or directly with the two representatives via their Linked In profiles.
Spotlight on the Focali representatives at COP16
Stephen Woroniecki - who are you?
I am an environmental social scientist with a broad interest in how social sciences can be used to make conservation work for people and nature. In my capacity as a researcher, I address the social dimensions of climate change, biodiversity loss, and inequality. My current research deals with the potential of two 'Nature-based Solutions' (Urban community-based wetlands creation projects) to address these challenges in an integrated way. I increasingly use methods and approaches from the social science and humanities to ask questions about social power and people’s lived experience of environmental change and response.
What will you focus on at COP16?
At COP16, I will be working with a team of partners led by Swedbio on addressing human rights-based approaches into nature-based solutions and other integrated work on climate change and biodiversity. The multi-stakeholder dialogue process informs the CBD COP16 in Colombia, particularly the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework, as well as other related policy processes. My specific role involves plan stakeholder workshops, weaving different knowledge strands together, and facilitating the multistakeholder dialogue taking place adjacent to the CBD COP16.
Stephen Woroniecki Principal Research Officer WWT London Wetland Centre (see full bio below the Q&A) with Ashanapuri Hertz Programme Officer SwedBio at the UNFCCC UN SBSTA/SBI meeting held in Bonn in June 2024. Ashanapuri and Stephen co-arranged one of the dialogue meetings ahead of COP16 on the sidelines of this Bonn meeting. The dialogue process involves a broad range of partners and stakeholders. *
At COP16 a side event co-arranged by these partners involved will be held present the outcomes and findings of the dialogue process: Exploring the Role of a Human Rights-Based Approach for Biodiversity and Climate Action.
Read more about the inclusive conversations series in this article by SwedBio and in this reflection post by Stephen.
*Partners: The Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Network (BES-Net), a partnership-driven initiative by UNDP, UNEP-WCMC and UNESCO, together with SwedBio, Soka Gakkai International, Climate Development and Knowledge Network, and Focali, has conducted a dialogue process between May and October 2024 for advancing an HRBA for biodiversity and climate action. This dialogue process comprised a series of preparatory workshops, both in-person and online, which have led to a final multi-actor dialogue at COP16. Stakeholders engaged included Indigenous Peoples and local communities, women, youths, NGOs, State Parties, researchers and practitioners. The core aim was to strengthen the capacity of actors in understanding and implementing HRBA for biodiversity and climate action. The dialogue process was supported by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD).
Jesica Lopéz - what will you focus on at COP16?
At COP16, my interests lie at the intersection of finance for biodiversity and resource allocation, addressing the critical issue of biodiversity loss. I am particularly focused on exploring biosocioeconomies and alternative models to reduce deforestation. By advocating for innovative financial mechanisms and equitable resource distribution, I aim to support sustainable land use practices that protect and restore biodiversity and its underpinning ecosystems. Additionally, I am keen on examining how socio-economic frameworks can be adapted to promote conservation efforts and climate mitigation ensuring that economic development does not come at the expense of our planet’s rich biological heritage. Through these efforts, I hope to contribute to a future where socio-ecological futures are understood, and environmental stewardship go hand in hand.
Among other activities I am for Focali part of organizing and will be a panelist in an official COP16 event led by SEI: Bioeconomy for biodiversity: challenges in value chains of non-timber forest products. I am in addition part of the Lund University delegation to COP16.
In this short Focali video you can hear me talk more about my work on socio-bioeconomies for thriving and resilience standing nature in the Colombian Amazon. Welcome to connect with me on Linked In if you want to know more or want to meet up during COP16.
What will you do right before COP16?
On the Friday, 11 October I will defend my doctoral thesis in Environmental Science at the Centre for Environmental and Climate Science and Agenda 2030 Graduate School at Lund University. The title of the PhD Thesis is: “From canopy to catastrophe. Understanding the environmental crisis in northern Colombian Amazon.”
The PhD defense will be possible to join via zoom and the PhD thesis can be downloaded here. Welcome to connect with me via Linked In during or after COP16 to discuss more about the themes and possible collaboration areas ahead!
Photo by: Sara Håkansson Communications officer Centre for Environmental and Climate Science (CEC) Lund University.
Bios of Jesica and Stephen
Jesica López earned her BSc in Environmental Biology in 2009. She then embarked on her MSc in sustainable forest and nature management at the University of Copenhagen. Over the years, Jesica expanded into diverse experiences in the field of ecosystem services valuation, biodiversity loss risks, policy-making processes, life cycle assessments and science-policy-society interface studies, in both the private and public sectors in Europe. In 2024, she completed her PhD in Environmental Science at the Centre for Environmental and Climate Science (CEC) and Agenda 2030 Graduate School at Lund University. Her expertise ranks from methodologies from systems analysis to GIS and remote sensing. Her research interests are focus on our understanding of socioecological systems, sustainable land use, biodiversity and conservation and the interconnectedness with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for sustainable futures.
Stephen Woroniecki has an interdisciplinary research background in biodiversity conservation, climate change adaptation and loss and damage. He has worked and studied at the University of Edinburgh, Stockholm Resilience Centre, Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies and The Centre for Climate Science and Policy Research in Linkoping. Stephen is part of the IPBES Transformative Change assessment. To explore the complexity of social-ecological systems with relevant knowledge-holders, Stephen is exploring the use of novel and participatory methodologies, including arts-based research and serious games. He has research experience from Latin America, Western Europe, East Africa, South Asia and the Pacific.
The Focali involvement at COP16 is done in collaboration and synergies with the two Focali representatives home organizations and the Focali - SIANI collaboration. In addition, Stephen is collaborating closely with Swedbio at Stockholm Resilience Centre in the dialogue process and Jesica with SEI in Bogotá in the COP16 side event. If you would like to meet the two Focali representatives going to COP16 or have collaboration ideas or questions welcome to connect with Maria Ölund Project Manager of Focali: maria.olund@wexsus.se or directly with the two Focali representatives at COP16 via their Linked In profiles.