Divisive 30x30 protected areas target struggles to win trust at Cop15

The target is dominating at the biodiversity summit, but the problem of finding a balance between Indigenous peoples' rights and conservation remains unresolved

Just as the climate conference focuses on 1.5C, the UN biodiversity conference appears to have found its north star - protecting 30% of land and sea by 2030. From the moment delegates landed at Montreal-Trudeau airport, adverts at the baggage carousel were frank about Canada's aims for Cop15: achieving 30x30, the tagline for the proposal. The perceived success of the overall conference hangs on this single target, say those who support it.

The science is clear that humanity must better protect key parts of the planet. The destruction of forests and other vital ecosystems must stop by 2030 if the world is to meet 1.5C, according to the IPCC. But 30x30 is actually just one of more than 20 targets being agreed at the Cop15 biodiversity conference in Montreal, and it also happens to be one of the most divisive issues on the agenda. Everyone at the summit has an opinion about the most high-profile target and what it should mean: for some it is not ambitious enough, for others it is impossible to enforce, but the main criticism is that area-based conservation violates human rights.