COP17 United Nations Biodiversity Conference in Armenia

By Paul Logothetis

Media Relations Advisor, uOttawa

October 16, 2026

Colorful butterfly
From October 19 to 30 2026, the Republic of Armenia will host the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP17) in Yerevan, bringing together representatives of governments from around the world, international organizations, the scientific community, civil society, Indigenous Peoples, youth, and the private sector. COP17 Armenia represents a historic opportunity to assess collective progress, strengthen cooperation, and accelerate action toward achieving the global biodiversity goals by 2030.

Members of the media may directly contact the following uOttawa academic experts:

Pag Yendu Yentcharé (English and French)

Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, Faculty of Social Sciences.

[email protected]

Professor Yentcharé will be attending the COP17 UN biodiversity conference in Yerevan, Armenia. 

His research interests include: 

  • Human rights in relation to environmental law and governance.
  • Human rights and the governance of new technologies.
  • Epistemology.
  • The ethical analysis of international development issues, with a strong focus on socio-legal approaches.

“COP17 should be a key moment for conducting an initial global assessment of the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (adopted in 2022) and in identifying made progress and efforts still needed to achieve the 23 targets set for 2030. 

I am particularly interested in the issues surrounding the implementation of the Cali Fund, whose terms were adopted by COP16 Decision in 2024. This fund aims to collect financial contributions from users of digital sequencing information on genetic resources (DSI). Broadly speaking, this relates to digital data for the genetic sequencing of plants, animals, and microorganisms, which can be used to develop new food, cosmetics, or pharmaceuticals to ensure the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from its use.”