The extraordinary meeting of the Conference of the Parties (ExCOP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was just that, a truly extraordinary meeting. The decision to host the ExCOP in Colombia started in the weeks leading up to Conference of the Parties-4 held in Bratislava in 1998. One of the most striking events during the week leading to the ExCOP was the creation of what would later be known as the Miami Group, which included several countries that are important exporters of commodities, and that also use a growing number of genetically modified plants. The ExCOP plenary was opened by Minister Laszlo Miklos, and was followed by an intervention from H. E. Andres Pastrana Arango, President of Colombia, who called on delegates to adopt the protocol as a way to promote food security, health and equity. One of them was Veit Koster, whom Minister Juan Mayr called that day in his speech the architect of the protocol.