The Convention on Biological Diversity

• Author: John H. Knox
• Pages: 29-38

Chapter 3

The Convention on Biological

Diversity1

by John H. Knox

International wildlife law is the oldest branch of international environ-

mental law. Many treaties to conserve wildlife long predate the rise of

modern environmentalism in the 1960s and 1970s, and some conservation

treaties were signed more than a century ago.2But the early wildlife agree-

ments are quite limited in scope. They primarily concern animals that cross

national borders and have some obvious value to humans. Even the conser-

vation agreements that emerged from the modern environmental movement,

such as the 1973 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species

(CITES), are limited to particular species—in the case of CITES, species

that are or may be endangered as a result of international trade.3

As ecological studies began to demonstrate the importance of protecting all

biological diversity,environmentalists began to argue for a comprehensive in-

ternational agreement that would apply to biodiversity generally. To be effec-

tive, such an agreement would need to address the main causes of biodiversity

loss, such as habitat conversion. As a result, it would be more controversial

than the preexisting conservation agreements since it would necessarily in-

trude into areas that national governments have traditionally considered to be

within their exclusive sovereignty, such as use of domestic wildlife, creation

of national protected areas, and regulation of private land use.

One way to argue for international restrictions in these areas is to rely on

fundamental moral principles. Basic concepts of human dignity underlie

29

1. This chapter is based on a paper presented at the Goddard Forum (State Col-

lege, Dec. 5, 2002).

2. See Simon Lyster, International Wildlife Law 40, 63, 74, 97, 112

(1985).

3. United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of

Wild Fauna and Flora, Mar. 3, 1973, 27 U.S.T. 1087, 993 U.N.T.S. 243, avail-

able at http://www.cites.org (last visited May 25, 2005).