Potential for academic institutions to support international biodiversity commitments

Élie Pédarros , E.J. Milner-Gulland, Colin M. Beale, Robert J. Brown, Ashley Dias, Arvin C. Diesmos, George Holmes, Hannah C. Nicholas, Onyeka Nwosu, Mohammad Khalid Sayeed Pasha, Mark Shirley, Philip A. Stephens, Philip JK McGowan 

The implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) emphasises a “whole-of-government and whole-of-society” approach to achieving ambitious biodiversity conservation Goals and Targets. The Conference of the Parties (COP) to the CBD invites academic and research institutions to support the implementation of the KMGBF and recently established regional/sub-regional Technical and Scientific Cooperation Centres (TSCCs) to assist Parties to the CBD. Yet, it remains to be determined to what extent and in what ways academics and research institutions can support the KMGBF, and how such support can be coordinated with the actions of TSCCs. Through a network analysis of the actors involved in the National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) of 51 African countries, we assessed the expected contributions of academic institutions as knowledge providers and facilitators. Academics are expected to play a key role in the implementation of global biodiversity policies. Network analyses show that TSCCs improve information and knowledge exchange by structuring the network and increasing interactions between Parties in the same region. Moreover, the integration of a coherent network of universities, exemplified by the UK's “CASCADE” consortium, further strengthens these exchanges by establishing relationships that promote diversity of interactions between actors at and between local, regional and global scales. This is complementary to the structuring capacity of the TSCCs, indicating that combining the organisational strengths of TSCCs with the collaborative potential of universities can improve knowledge flow within the network, essential to advancing the implementation of the KMGBF. As such, the engagement of academic institutions is not merely supportive but foundational, creating structured mechanisms for long-term knowledge production, capacity-building, and policy guidance. Promoting structured engagement and collaboration between TSCCs and academic institutions can significantly advance biodiversity conservation efforts by filling knowledge gaps and facilitating targeted capacity-building initiatives at various scales.