Consultation on the update of Australia's Strategy for Nature 2019-2030
We are updating Australia’s Strategy for Nature 2019–2030 (the Strategy). The Strategy guides what everyone, the Australian Government, non-government organisations and communities can do to help our environment.
The Strategy is being updated to reflect Australia’s contributions to the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (the GBF). The GBF is a once-in-a-decade international agreement. It includes 23 targets to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 and 4 goals to live in harmony with nature by 2050.
The next meeting of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is in October 2024. Before this meeting, Australia is required to submit a revised national biodiversity strategy. Australia will update the existing Strategy to reflect the issues that impact biodiversity decline in Australia.
The federal, state and territory environment ministers have agreed to work together to tackle the main environment issues that impact Australia. These issues include climate change, land and sea use change, invasive species, pollution, and unsustainable use of natural resources.
You can read the environment ministers agreement [PDF 161KB].
Australia’s environment ministers agreed to develop national biodiversity targets for 6 priority areas. These are:
Effective restoration of degraded terrestrial, inland water, marine and coastal ecosystems.
Tackling the impact of invasive species.
Building a circular economy and reducing the impact of plastics on nature.
Minimising the impact of climate change on nature.
Protect and conserve 30% of Australia’s land and 30% of Australia’s oceans by 2030.
Work towards zero new extinctions.
These ministers also agreed that 3 enablers of change are required to support the delivery of the national priority areas and other GBF targets. These are:
Ensuring environmental data and information is widely accessible and supports planning.
Mainstreaming biodiversity considerations into government and business decision-making, including in financing, policies, regulations and planning processes.
Ensuring equitable representation and participation in decisions relating to nature, particularly for First Nations peoples.
Australia will continue to deliver on the existing policies and programs that support biodiversity conservation and address the remaining GBF targets.
We are seeking your feedback on a set of draft targets that reflect Australia’s priority areas. Your responses to this survey will be used to inform the new biodiversity targets in the updated Strategy and support planning for its implementation.
The decline of nature is a local, national and global in origin. Protecting and restoring biodiversity requires cooperative action and partnership. We invite you to consider how we can all work together to improve biodiversity outcomes.
To have your say:
Read the attached discussion paper.
Complete and lodge the survey by 5pm on Thursday, 4 April 2024.
The survey will be open between 14 March and 4 April 2024 to submit your feedback.
