Despite nearly 30 years of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), nature is declining at rates previously unseen in recorded history. Few of the 20 Aichi Biodiversity Targets have been translated into progress (Green et al., 2019). Notwithstanding this poor record, 2020 was billed as the super year for nature and biodiversity. A new deal for nature and people was set to be established through a post-2020 biodiversity framework at the Convention's 15th Conference of the Parties. Then Covid-19 struck. The pandemic has delayed international agreements and actions focused on turning the tide in favour of biodiversity. Environmental protections are already being scaled back, eroding earlier gains and increasing the vulnerability of communities across the globe.