Highlights and images for 6 February 2026

The day started on a high note, with delegates electing a new Multidisciplinary Expert Panel (MEP), whose members will serve the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) for a three-year term, starting at the closure of the Platform’s 12th Plenary session (IPBES 12). Several of the outgoing Members will continue contributing to IPBES in other capacities, including as authors of future assessments.

Throughout the day, delegates advanced negotiations on outstanding issues. Building on discussions in an informal huddle that convened the previous night, Working Group 1 managed to conclude the consideration of all key messages of the Business and Biodiversity Assessment’s Summary for Policymakers (SPM).

Want to dig deeper into today's talks? Read the full Earth Negotiations Bulletin daily report.

In the afternoon, Co-Chair Eeva Primmer shared that, with one exception, all tables and figures have been agreed upon by the informal group addressing them. Working Group 1 turned to the background messages, with discussions continuing in an evening session. 

In Working Group 2, delegates agreed not only on workplan indicators for the period leading up to IPBES 13. Responding to a recommendation by the Platform’s review panel, they also mandated the development of a “holistic indicator framework,” which will serve to assess the Platform’s impact more generally. 

After suspending to allow for further consultations among Members, they also reached agreement on the setup of an intersessional process for the Bureau and MEP to prepare a proposal on potential future deliverables and institutional arrangements across work programme objectives. The proposal will reflect on different deliverable formats, including lessons learned from conducting the Platform’s first fast-track assessment (the Business and Biodiversity Assessment). With this, Working Group 2 concluded its mandate.

As IPBES Chair David Obura noted in a Stocktaking Plenary, no country has thus far come forward as a potential host for IPBES 13. This means that delegates are likely only going to agree on the session’s date at this point, leaving it up to the Bureau to make a decision on the next host and making it all the more likely that IPBES 13 will convene in Bonn, Germany, as the seat of the IPBES Secretariat.