We don't need anyone to tell us that the Earth is suffering. Many of the land and water ecosystems have been under constant assault, mostly due to the issue of global climate change.

This may be changing, however, thanks to a landmark agreement that was part of more than 190 countries around the world. They signed on the dotted line to save 30% of the land and water on earth by 2030.

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This landmark deal, which was announced in Montréal at the UN Biodiversity Conference, was not the first time that this was discussed. It also was not the only agreement that was reached, as the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) was also reached on the final day that negotiations took place.

The New York Times reports that only about 80% of the Earth's oceans and 17% of the land on earth is currently protected. This leaves tje remaining it wide open for industry to harm the ecosystem through such means as farming, mining, and fishing.

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The framework calls for a 30 x 30 target that will increase the amount of land and water that is protected around the world significantly. There are also other benefits to the agreement as well.

For example, indigenous individuals who live on protected land will not be displaced. This is been a problem in many areas historically but watchdog groups are on the alert to make sure that doesn't happen.

There are other benefits that may come out of this agreement, such as cutting how much food waste is seen worldwide by 50%. Reducing the introduction of invasive species is another factor. Leaders also said that they would reduce the loss of areas with high biodiversity importance to almost 0.

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Although most countries around the world did sign this agreement, the United States and the Vatican did not sign. In the United States, there is a similar target as part of the domestic agenda set forth by President Biden.

In the past, many governments have had a difficult time sticking with these agreements and have fallen short of the mark. Conservationists around the world are still hopeful that this agreement will stick and it will prove to be beneficial to people worldwide.