Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek says Australia has gone from a "laggard to leader" on nature protection with a commitment to protect 30 per cent of land and ocean by 2030.
Ms Plibersek, who is in Montreal for the COP15 biodiversity conference, announced on Sunday that Australia will host a summit to encourage private investment in the environment.
The details for a global deal to protect nature are being negotiated at the UN summit, with environment ministers from almost 200 governments needing to finalise the details on Monday.
It's hoped a framework to conserve the environment by 2030 can be similar to the legally binding Paris agreement struck in 2015.
Ms Plibersek said Australia had "high ambition" for protecting the environment and pointed to her government's target of conserving 30 per cent of the nation's land and ocean by the end of the decade.
"We think that should be a global target," she told ABC radio.
"It's really important to say that Australia has been playing a really positive role in negotiating this final agreement.
"We've really gone from environmental laggard to leader on the world stage."
When asked if the May federal budget will significantly increase funding for the environment, Ms Plibersek hinted more was to come.
"We already saw an increase in the October budget, and we are determined not only to increase government funding, but to make it easier for others to invest in repairing nature as well," she said.
The minister said philanthropists and business could play a greater role, with the government having set aside $1.8 billion in the budget.
In Australia, it's estimated more than $1 billion a year needs to be spent to protect and restore the environment.