In the past few decades there has been growing understanding that human well-being' is fundamentally linked to the state of the environment. One manifestation of this is the increasing acceptance of biological diversity ('biodiversity') as an important focus for human concerns. At international level this has perhaps been most clearly expressed by the entry into force and continuing implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Through this and other mechanisms, biodiversity has become the subject of many national and international policies and regulations.