The Rio Conventions

The three Rio Conventions are the outcomes of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, also known as the Earth Summit, which took place in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) in 1992.  They aim to ensure the conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity as well as the equal sharing of the assets created by the exploitation of genetic resources.  The three conventions are: 

• The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) ;
• The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) ;
• The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).