> One important piece of context to keep in mind is that although the US helped negotiate the Convention on Biological Diversity — the treaty under which COP16

> One important piece of context to keep in mind is that although the US helped negotiate the Convention on Biological Diversity — the treaty under which COP16 takes place — it’s not a formal member of the agreement. In fact, the US is the only country, other than the Vatican, that’s not party to the Convention. ... and I'm guessing the US doesn't want to sign on because in general we're skeptical of treaties that oblige us to do anything? And a big rich country not participating probably contributes to that funding gap? Blaming the bureaucrats for this not being effective seems misguided. Bureaucrats only have the powers that we give them. It's not gonna work because rich and powerful stakeholders don't think it's valuable.