Human life on Earth is under threat unless biodiversity loss can, not only be ended but also reversed, by 2030.

A new paper has said halting and reversing the global decline in biodiversity is now urgent to avoid destabilizing the Earth’s vital systems that support human well-being.

The authors warned that without protecting remaining intact biomes and ecosystems, climate and development goals will be impossible to achieve. It calls for an urgent paradigm shift towards a “Nature Positive” future wherein humanity goes beyond current biodiversity frameworks, which the authors argue are fragmented, and prioritises Nature Positive goals as highly as climate and human development ones.

“To move toward stabilising our Earth system, we need to adopt a unified Nature Positive approach to global environmental goals and governance. This means global agreements for human development, the climate, biodiversity, and the ocean,” said lead author and Canadian conservationist Harvey Locke, vice chair for Nature Positive, IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas.

The study explained human-driven decline in biodiversity is contributing to a rapid unravelling of the Earth system – disrupting the natural processes that are essential for human societies to flourish.

For example, nature loss drives growing risks to human health, including greater infectious disease spread linked to ecosystem disruption as well as negative impacts on mental health. The authors also describe how rainfall patterns vital to agriculture and water supplies are profoundly affected by biodiversity.

“We must act now to halt and reverse the loss of nature by 2030 toward achieving an integrated equitable, Nature Positive, and carbon neutral future,” added Locke.

The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) – adopted at COP15 in 2022 – calls for halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030 but, the researchers say, it pays scant attention to natural processes.

The paper includes a rigorous assessment of current GBF targets and identifies key gaps—including limited attention to large-scale natural processes such as biome function, hydrology, and species migration. It then outlines the specific actions and metrics needed to achieve biodiversity conservation in synergy with climate stabilization, securing freshwater systems, ocean conservation, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

To deliver on the Nature Positive goal by 2030, the authors argue for first preventing the loss of intact areas wherever they are found. Co-author professor Johan Rockström, joint director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Germany, said: “Achieving climate and development goals is simply impossible without keeping nature intact. Our findings emphasise the vital importance of immediately halting the loss of remaining intact biomes and ecosystems, which are irreplaceable and cannot be quickly restored. And then in parallel, reverse species extinction risk and accelerate nature restoration efforts, which take more time.”

The authors argue that Nature Positive goals be prioritized as highly as global climate and human development goals. Co-author Professor Raina Plowright from Cornell University, USA said: “Global policies to protect intact nature and restore damaged ecosystems should be prioritised to the same extent as climate action under the Paris Agreement and the SDGs for human development.

“Prioritising nature is essential for reducing the infectious disease spread and protecting human health globally. It is the only practical way to ensure that the 21st century progresses toward health, peace, prosperity, stability, and natural beauty.”

Locke concluded: “Too often biodiversity is seen as a ‘nice-to-have’ luxury that takes second place to so-called ‘real world’ concerns about the economy and human development. We show that this is a fundamental misunderstanding of reality. Biodiversity at all scales is integral to the functioning of the planet (including the climate system and freshwater). It is therefore both vital to human well-being, and the context for all economic activity.”