3 September 2016: At the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress (WCC), 11 conservation organizations announced a partnership to identify, map, monitor and conserve Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) with a US$15 million commitment over the next five years. IUCN launched a related Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs, which is expected to contribute to the achievement of the biodiversity-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) Aichi Biodiversity Targets.

The KBA partnership builds on partners’ track records in identifying and monitoring sites, such as BirdLife International’s 13,000 Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) and the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund’s (CEPF) identification of 6,000 KBAs in global biodiversity hotspots. More than 18,000 global and regional KBAs have been identified and mapped through initiatives such as these. The new KPBA partnership aims to unite these efforts under a single KBA umbrella and expand the KBA network to cover other ecosystems and species. Through the partnership, organizations will mobilize expertise and resources to further identify and map KBAs around the world and monitor these sites to identify potential threats and appropriate conservation actions. Partners will advise national governments on actions to expand protected area (PA) networks and work with the private sector to minimize and mitigate their impacts on nature.

CBD Executive Secretary, Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias, said, “This partnership will enhance global conservation efforts by highlighting internationally important sites in need of urgent conservation action. It will also help us reach the targets in the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity and allow national governments and conservation organizations to ensure that scarce resources are directed to the most important places for nature.”

IUCN developed its Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs in partnership with hundreds of experts and decision-makers. The standard is anticipated to contribute to achieving SDG 14, “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources” and SDG 15, “Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.” IUCN Director General, Inger Andersen, said the role of the Standard in providing such site-specific information “underpins all sustainable development and will be critical for achieving the SDGs.”

KBA Partners include the Amphibian Survival Alliance, BirdLife International, Conservation International (CI), CEPF, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), Global Wildlife Conservation, IUCN, NatureServe, RSPB, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

The WCC is convening under the theme, ‘Planet at the Crossroads,’ in Honolulu, Hawai’i, the US, from 1-10 September. [IUCN Press Release] [WCC Website] [IISD RS Coverage of the WCC] [IISD RS IUCN Congress Bulletin, 2 September] [IISD RS IUCN Congress Bulletin, 3 September]