Toward a More Expansive Discourse in a Changing World: An Analysis of Political Leaders’ Speeches on Biodiversity

Sang Hun Lee, Yi Hyun Kang and Rong Dai
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Sang Hun Lee: Korea Environment Institute, Sejong 30147, Korea
Yi Hyun Kang: Bavarian School of Public Policy, Technical University of Munich, 80333 Munich, Germany
Rong Dai: Nanjing Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People’s Republic of China, Nanjing 210042, China

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 5, 1-10

Abstract: Speeches delivered in the Conference of the Parties (COPs) to the Convention on Biological Diversity represent leading discourses about biodiversity conservation. The discourse shared by high-level politicians is especially influential in the financing and decision-making process of global biodiversity governance. However, the speeches given in the COPs have not been the subject of systematic analyses until now. This study analyzes the host countries’ speeches given at the six most recent COPs and investigates which discourses have been expressed in the speeches. The regulatory discourse that views nature as a resource was found to be the dominant discourse, while other discourses that view nature as a scientific object or a spiritual entity were represented only marginally. As the need for a transformational policy for biodiversity conservation is growing amid a global pandemic, it is essential to deepen our understanding of the dynamics and complexity of nature and reflect it in the policy process. This study suggests that more balanced discourse on biodiversity may earn broader audiences’ consensus on biodiversity conservation.

Keywords: biodiversity; CBD; COP; discourse; high-level segment; political leader; speech (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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