Focus area 17. Ecosystems and biodiversity
Proposals in the e-Inventory which address this focus area tend to put forward standalone goals which either broadly address the multiple interrelated issues associated with ecosystems and biodiversity, or focus on a specific interrelated issue such as forests. A number of proposals reference the UN Convention on Biological Diversity’s 2011 – 2020 Strategic Plan for Biodiversity, which include the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. This would suggest that this plan and affiliated targets would need to be the starting point for any new global goal on this focus area.
Broad Ecosystems and Biodiversity Goals
| Goal | Preserve biodiversity including keeping land and oceans healthy [61] | Interlinkages | Encourage the self-regulation processes of ecosystems [62] | Interlinkages |
| Targets | By 2015, Governments should integrate education for sustainable development more actively. | 
| Curtailment of clear cutting of tropical and boreal forests as well as draining of wetlands. | |
| By 2015, Governments should intensify their actions to fulfil their commitments in the Biodiversity Strategic Plan. | 
| Preservation, increased attention, and monitoring of aquatic ecosystems. |  
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| Seas: By 2020, reduce by two-thirds, plastic pollution in the seas. | 
| Development of domestic regulations as well as international agreements and treaties to protect glacier regions (Arctic, Antarctic, Himalayan and others) from economic exploitation. |  |
| Forests : By 2020, all remaining virgin forests are protected from conversion and degradation, consistent with the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity | |
| By 2020, policies to stop the clearing of forests should be put in place at the global and national levels. | | Protection of sensitive areas requiring their safeguarding by the public and through internationally binding law. | |
| The restoration of over 150 million hectares of cleared or degraded forest landscapes is achieved by 2020, with the creation of millions of new jobs and enhanced livelihoods, improved security and adaptation to climate change. |  
| Advancement of organic farming to further develop sustainable agriculture. | 
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| Extraction: By 2020, States will have implemented the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples with special attention to free, prior, and informed consent. | | Worldwide banishment of discharge of untreated sewage and other waste materials into natural ecosystems. | 
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| Cities: By 2030, city transport needs are or remain predominantly met by mass transport, walking and bicycling. | 
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