Despite the existence of technical solutions and policy frameworks, progress on halting biodiversity loss remains too slow. Part of the reason lies in what the negotiation agendas leave out. Culture, spirituality, the protection of land defenders, and peace, security and conflict are often sidelined. Most multilateral processes have yet to address the ethical deficit in their governance.

The Global Ethical Stocktake (GES) set out to address this. Established by the UNFCCC COP30 Presidency in 2025, under the leadership of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the GES invited youth, elders, Indigenous leaders, artists, philosophers, scientists and faith representatives to reflect on the deeper values that should guide climate action. Broadly, the GES dialogues called for:

• Recognizing ethics, culture, and spirituality as catalysts of change
• Centering justice, equity, intergenerational responsibility, and relational worldviews
• Moving beyond GDP as a well-being indicator
• Strengthening institutional transparency and accountability

The climate and biodiversity crises share the same root causes, and climate action is itself an urgent need under Target 8 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), while ecosystem restoration under Target 2 is central to both carbon sequestration and halting nature loss. The values-based framework that emerged from the GES can therefore help advance global biodiversity conservation and deepen synergies between the Rio Conventions.

This side event will explore how the GES, and the recommendations that emerged from its dialogues, could create pathways for integrating these overlooked issues into decision-making spaces. It will focus on three blind spots in biodiversity governance:

• Whose values and knowledge count
• The drivers of nature loss that negotiations avoid
• The cultural shift needed to move beyond extractive economies toward ones grounded in care and ecosystem restoration.