UNDP statement as prepared for delivery

Honourable members of this Assembly, ladies and gentlemen,

It is a privilege for me to be with you today and join this collective call for living in harmony with Nature and living well. 

There is no sustainable development without a healthy planet. With this conviction, UNDP has been reinforcing our support to countries to tackle the Planetary Crisis. We know there is no 1.5 without Nature. At the same time the climate crisis needs to be addressed to protect Nature. There is no prosperity without Nature.

In 2023, we established the Nature Hub, dedicated to spearhead the implementation of UNDP’s Nature Pledge - UNDP’s commitment to scale our support to UN Member States in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and accelerating achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Nature Pledge is deeply aligned with the vision of this Assembly as it places Nature at the heart of development.

We embrace the fact that our natural world is interconnected, intertwined, and integral to human life; remembering that we are part of Nature. We are Nature.

The Nature Pledge is built upon three shifts that are essential for humanity to achieve the global biodiversity goals and SDGs. 

Firstly, a Global Value shift to transform the value we place on Nature and drive changes in people’s behaviour. 

Since 2002, through our Equator Prize, we have supported more than 300 leaders of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities in amplifying their view of the world and their aspirations in global platforms.

Secondly, an Economic and Finance shift that supports a system where natural capital is valued, and where finance flows are redirected towards nature-positive and achieving climate goals and SDGs.

For example, through our Biodiversity Finance Initiative, we are supporting 133 countries to ensure finance for achieving the global biodiversity goals and seamlessly connecting these efforts to the Integrated National Finance Framework (INFF) for SDGs.

Thirdly, a Policy and Practice shift to deliver change at scale in country and on the ground.

UNDP supports countries to ensure integrated action on Nature and climate through policy alignment between NDCs, NBSAPs and other sectoral policies and plans, as well as coordinated implementation of these plans.

We also support over 120 countries through direct grants to communities and Indigenous Peoples in support of their integrated Nature-climate action, supported by the  Global Environment Facility.

We in UNDP recognise, value, and are grateful for the traditional wisdom keepers who have been upholding a vision of the natural world as interconnected, where the Earth is not an asset base but is a Mother, with whom we are invited to live in a spirit of reciprocity.

This knowledge, alongside modern scientific methods, inspires and guides our work.

We are actively exploring how we can accelerate a shift in our narratives and values that fosters such a reconnection with Nature. 

Our 2026 Human Development Report will tackle this, unpacking the relationship between Nature and humanity, fully embedding the notion of human development within our planetary systems. 

We will also start capitalizing the word Nature in our publications. This step is inspired by the 2020 Report of the Secretary General on Harmony with Nature, in which Nature is written with a capital N to recognize the “intrinsic value of Nature or Mother Earth” and the fact that it is “not an object or property but a subject of law with legal personhood”.

In conclusion, honourable Assembly, the UN Development Programme fully supports this call for an Earth-centred paradigm, which we see as a foundation for ensuring prosperity of humanity into the future. We acknowledge Bolivia's call to convene annual assemblies on April 22, as well as the Mother Earth Summit in 2030, and look forward to supporting the member states as noted in UN Resolution A/79/210. 

Earth-centred paradigm does not conflict with human-centered approaches to development promoted by UNDP and partners; rather, it complements and reflects the recognition that only by reconnecting with Nature as our kin and integrating Nature’s concerns we succeed in advancing and safeguarding societal progress for current and future generations. 

We do so with the conviction that amplifying action to live in Harmony with Nature is urgent not only to ensure the material survival and economic prosperity of humanity, but also to nourish our deepest aspirations for personal and collective fulfilment.