Event: CBD Informal Meeting on Nagoya Protocol Articles 19 and 20 [viewed]
Organized by Japan and the United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies, in collaboration with the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), this informal meeting will discuss model contractual clauses, voluntary codes of conduct, guidelines and best practices and/or standards, as set out in Articles 19 and 20 of the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-sharing (ABS). The meeting also aims to assist governments in their implementation of the Nagoya Protocol by increasing awareness of different approaches used by relevant sectors involved in ABS activities.
3 March 2013: The sixteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP 16) to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) opened on Sunday in Bangkok, Thailand, and will continue through 14 March 2013. 
February 2013: The Secretariat of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) has posted the report from the second meeting of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group of Technical Experts (AGTE) for Impact Indicator Refinement. 
3 March 2013: The Secretariat of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals announced that Saudi Arabia signed the Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation and Management of Dugongs and their Habitats throughout their Range (Dugong MoU). 
28 February 2013: The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), as a contribution towards the objectives of the Consortium of Scientific Partners on Biodiversity, hosted an international workshop on building a biodiversity information system for South Africa that could be also be applied in other African countries.
4 March 2013: A joint side-event by the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES) was held on “The Saiga Antelope: Challenges and Opportunities for Conservation and Sustainable Use.” 
8 February 2013: The Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar Convention) has released a video meant to guide contracting parties through the process of providing updated information on all of their Ramsar Sites.
26 February 13: The Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar Convention) has announced the upload of reports received from the celebrations of World Wetlands Day (WWD), which was observed on 2 February 2013.
25 February 2013: The Regional Great Lakes Forum on Freshwater Ecosystems brought together 75 representatives of governments, civil society and the private sector, as well as experts in freshwater services in the Great Lakes region, who expressed their concern over the scattered management of freshwater ecosystems across the region and called for addressing the threats affecting freshwater services. 
28 February 2013: Albania, Botswana and the Federated States of Micronesia have ratified the Nagoya Protocol on access and benefit-sharing (ABS), bringing the number of ratifications to 15.
