On 14 July, the European Commission adopted a proposal to revise the Mercury Regulation that will ban the use of dental amalgam, responsible for 40 tonnes of mercury consumption annually in the EU. This regulation sets clear rules to eliminate the last intentional uses of mercury in various products, aligning with the EU's Zero Pollution Ambition, and propelling the EU towards becoming the world's first mercury-free economy.

Today, the Align project is publishing recommendations bringing more clarity on ‘what’ elements of biodiversity to measure and ‘how’ to assess impacts and dependencies on biodiversity in a business context. This document provides the technical basis to support many evolving policies and standards and foster harmonization of natural capital accounting within Europe and beyond.

The exhibition consists of 25 original photographs showing species of wild, migratory or resident animals living within Mexican borders.

The European Commission adopted its revised Guidance on the EU regime governing ivory trade on 16 December, as part of its commitment under the EU Biodiversity Strategy to take additional action against elephant poaching and ivory trafficking globally.

The Strategy sets out concrete measures for the protection, restoration and sustainable use of soils.

The Commission delivers on circular economy and zero pollution ambitions by proposing stronger rules on waste exports to protect the environment and people’s health.

The proposed new rules intend to ensure that the products that EU citizens buy, use and consume on the EU market do not contribute to global deforestation and forest degradation.

On 1 October 2021, the Commission adopted the Implementing Decision laying down rules for the application of Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the calculation, verification and reporting of data on the separate collection of waste single-use plastic beverage bottles.

The regulation will address the negative consequences of POPs in waste and in material that could be recovered from it.

The EU forest strategy for 2030 is one of the flagship initiatives of the European Green Deal and builds on the EU biodiversity strategy for 2030. The strategy recognises the central and multifunctional role of forests, and the contribution of foresters and the entire forest-based value chain to achieving prosperous rural areas, EU biodiversity objectives and a sustainable and climate neutral economy by 2050.

On 10-11 November the European Commission and the European External Action Service organised the EU Arctic Forum and the Annual Arctic Indigenous Peoples’ Dialogue. Over two days, ministers, ambassadors, European and local policy makers, representatives of Indigenous Peoples, NGOs, scientists, and university students discussed the situation in the Arctic and addressed the implementation of the updated EU Arctic Policy as expressed in the Joint Communication of 13 October 2021.

Senior officials from ASEAN and the EU gathered virtually on 16 September for the third EU-ASEAN High-Level Dialogue (HLD) on Environment and Climate Change, which was hosted by Brunei Darussalam.

Ministers from the 42 Member States of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), gathered in Cairo for the 2nd UfM Ministerial Conference on Environment and Climate Action, agreed on a common agenda to strengthen efforts in tackling the urgent multiple environmental and climate challenges faced by the Euro-Mediterranean region, including marine litter, sustainable waste management, biodiversity loss and air pollution.

The first segment of the Fifteenth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP15) took place in the Chinese city of Kunming and online from 11 to 15 October 2021. This was the biggest biodiversity conference in a decade. It included the participation of over 2900 delegates in Kunming, and 2400 connecting virtually.

Game-changing new financing commitments for nature and people were announced at UNGA’s 76th High Level event “Transformative Action for Nature and People”. These included the reiteration by President von der Leyen of her announcement in her State of the Union address that the European Union will double its external funding for biodiversity in the next 7 years, as well as the biggest-ever philanthropic commitment to nature conservation.

The first high-level meeting of the Global Alliance on Circular Economy and Resource Efficiency (GACERE) took place on September 14, at the World Circular Economy Forum. The Alliance, a deliverable of the EU’s Circular Economy Action Plan of March 2020, has the objective of advocating for a transition to the circular economy as a way of contributing to solving the climate, biodiversity and pollution crises.

The IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille (3-11 September) closed with its members proclaiming a Manifesto, through which they committed to respecting the perspectives and harnessing the agency of all citizens – especially youth, indigenous peoples and local community leaders who play a central role in nature and biodiversity conservation –, and promoting investments in nature, the transition to a nature-positive economy and nature-based solutions.

Read the main outcomes of the G20 Environment Ministers Meeting, held on July 22, and the G20 Leaders Summit organized from October 30 to 31, 2021.

The Governments of Ecuador, Germany, Ghana and Vietnam jointly organised a Ministerial Conference to build momentum and the political will to advance a coherent global strategy to end marine litter and combat plastic pollution.

Building on previous forums, WCEF2021 focused on the system level changes, or “game changers”, needed to accelerate the transition to a circular economy.