CONSENSUS BY DESIGN, POLICY BY DEFAULT - IMPLEMENTING THE CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY

The Convention on Biological Diversity promotes an exceptionally broad array of policy goals pertaining to biotic resources, species extinct ion, ecological health, and human welfare. In practice, the relative e mphasis given to one or another of these goals has been determined by the international institutions responsible for implementing projects u nder the convention. international donor agencies disagree as to wheth er they should target biologically rich areas for the benefit of the p lanet as a whole or promote conservation equally in every country as a means to economic development. Regression analysis of expenditures by the U.S. Agency for international Development and the World Bank-led Global Environment Facility shows that the geographic pattern of conse rvation assistance corresponds with donors' political and institutiona l affiliations and with the occurrence of species richness. Developmen t need does not influence the geographic allocation of conservation ai d.