COP16, the United Nations Biodiversity Conference, kicked off in Cali, Colombia, on Oct. 21. Delegates from 196 countries gathered at this United Nations climate conference to discuss how they must protect biodiversity and nature from further loss. Oceans are of particular importance, as they have 90% of the planet’s carbon stored in them.
However, only 4% of international conservation funding goes to ocean biodiversity. An art piece on display in the conference’s Blue Zone wants to raise awareness about that.
Benjamin Von Wong, artist and activist, and SeaTrees, the marine conservation nonprofit, teamed to build the Biodiversity Jenga blocks.
The 21-foot-tall sculpture is made of 34 individual blocks that contain 12 land and ocean ecosystems. It’s designed to symbolize “the delicate balance between human activity and the accelerating loss of Earth’s biodiversity.”
Biodiversity Jenga not only wants to raise awareness but also wants to raise funding for restoration projects. SeaTrees specializes in planting mangrove and kelp forests, which act as natural barriers to waves and sequester carbon dioxide.
The funding plans to happen on a blockchain, where data about each project will be presented online. The blocks will go on and offline or “retire.” It will be fully transparent, showing all the benefits and offering a new kind of carbon credit to invest in coastal restoration projects.
Photo Courtesy Benjamin Von Wong
“This installation is more than a sculpture — it’s a monument that symbolizes both the challenges we face and the solutions we can create together to restore balance to our planet,” Von Wong said in the official press release. “I hope Biodiversity Jenga stands as a turning point in our relationship with nature — where we choose restoration rather than extraction.”
The only difference between Biodiversity Jenga and the beloved party game is the blocks are designed to slide into each other rather than out. Participants restore balance to nature by pushing them back into place.
The first three projects will be a mangrove forest planting in Kenya, a kelp forest off the coast of Sydney, Australia, and a coral reef restoration in Fiji.
Landscape designer Milton Duarte crafted the 34 blocks, while artisan Sasha Herrera built seven dioramas showing the causes of habitat loss. More than 200 students from schools in the Cali area built the 150 animal figures included in some blocks.
“Ocean-based projects like kelp and mangrove restoration are in high demand and extremely effective for coastal protection, habitat, and carbon sequestration, yet support for them hasn’t met their outsized role in our planetary emergency,” Michael Stewart, SeaTrees co-founder, said in a statement. “The SeaTrees biodiversity funding model enhances our ability to direct resources to where they’re needed most, with transparent, real-world results.”
These credits are known as Biodiversity Credits and are supported by the Biodiversity Credit Alliance. They are defined as “a certificate that represents a measured and evidence-based unit of positive biodiversity outcome that is durable and additional to what would have otherwise occurred.”
Unlike carbon credits which only focus on emissions, biodiversity credits provide “critical services” for wildlife and people.
SeaTrees hopes biodiversity and carbon credits could work side by side to reach climate action goals. They could reach more than $2 billion invested by 2030.
SeaTree block buyers will receive multimedia updates and chances to interact with project developers. They will have access to scientific reports and updates on the Regen Network, the blockchain system housing Biodiversity Credits. Investors will get an NFT receipt upon a credit’s retirement. It will serve as proof of investment and a successful project.
The credits went on sale on Oct. 24. The Kenya project’s biodiversity blocks offer 300,000 marine biodiversity credits, offered for $3 each. Each block sold plants one mangrove tree over 10 years and also creates 1,200 jobs for the local community, a press release shared with The Business Download explained.
Photo Courtesy SeaTrees
“Biodiversity Blocks are an evolution in crediting and conservation,” Kevin Whilden, co-founder of SeaTrees, said. “They allow those of us working in restoration and protection to focus on the full ecosystem, not just carbon capture. We hope this model offers a pathway to restoring balance and ensuring ecosystems continue to support life on Earth.”
COP16 ran from Oct. 21 to Nov. 1. World leaders gathered to hear comments on various climate and biodiversity issues, including fishing, Indigenous peoples’ rights, children’s activism, and more.
SeaTrees runs around 24 projects and hopes to expand to 100 by 2030. They have worked with people like former professional surfer Kassia Meador to restore kelp forests in Monterey, California. The organization’s work has stopped soil erosion and enhanced habitats for sea otters and other marine wildlife.
