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Drawing on literature on world society and polity, we investigate the factors that drive the formation of global biodiversity governance. Using an event history analysis, we examine local and trans-local factors that influence how long it takes for countries to ratify the United Nation Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Three factors are positively correlated with CBD ratification rates: local environmentalism, the local orientation toward global governance, and trans-local peer pressure. The effects of peer pressure vary. Regional peers appear to influence countries to ratify the CBD more quickly, whereas global peers do not. The robust effect of regional peers is unique to biodiversity, contrary to what is known for other areas like climate change. We contribute to the literature of global environmental governance by providing an issue-area-specific model for biodiversity, and provide a reference point for future research on global biodiversity governance, including two protocols after the CBD.