13 November 2014: The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has released a report concluding that the world is on track to meet a 2020 Aichi Biodiversity Target on the expansion of protected areas, although more work is required to ensure areas of importance for biodiversity and ecosystem services are prioritized for protection. The report, titled ‘Protected Planet Report 2014: Tracking progress towards global targets for protected areas,’ was launched at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Parks Congress, meeting in Sydney, Australia.

The report is the second in a series tracking progress toward meeting Target 11 of the Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) Aichi Biodiversity Targets, which calls for managed conservation areas covering at least 17% of the world’s terrestrial areas and 10% of marine areas by 2020. The report warns the target will not be met: without further efforts to identify areas for protection; integrated and improved national planning; and assessments of how protected areas can be effectively and equitably managed.

Speaking on the report, UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner underscored the important economic role that protected areas play through the ecosystem services they provide, such as supplying water and timber and promoting eco-tourism. He stressed the need to build support and funding to ensure protected areas are effective and equitable. IUCN Director General Julia Marton-Lefèvre recalled that the IUCN World Parks Congress in Durban in 2003 “gave birth to the idea of global protected area targets.” She said the Protected Planet Report illustrates how well “we have advanced in reaching our goals.”

The 2014 report finds that 15.4% of terrestrial and inland water areas and 3.4% of oceans are now protected, covering a total of 20.6 million km2. While marine areas are lagging behind terrestrial areas, progress has been made in areas within coastal waters and national jurisdiction, reaching coverage of 10.9% and 8.4% respectively. However, marine protected areas cover only .25% of areas beyond national jurisdiction.

The report monitors global efforts to support and expand protected areas and makes recommendations for action. Protected Planet Report 2014 states that good progress has been made on: enhancing national reporting to track global progress; and accelerating the targeted expansion of the global protected area network. It explains that more limited progress has been made on, inter alia: understanding the benefits of protected areas to both people and nature; strengthening local community engagement; and funding, with US$76.1 billion per year required by 2020. The report recommends assessing the contribution of protected areas to each of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to inform indicator development.

Protected Planet Report 2014 was produced by UNEP’s World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC) in partnership with IUCN, and funded by the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment. [UNEP Press Release] [IUCN Press Release] [Publication: Protected Planet Report 2014: Tracking progress towards global targets for protected areas] [UN List of Protected Areas]