Making a difference

The IUCN Green List Standard supports successful protected and conserved area performance, by recognising, incentivising and building capacity to achieve defined impact in the full range of legal, cultural, social, geographical and ecological conditions. As a global initiative based on site-level implementation, the sustainability impact spans scales from local to global.

Global Impact Dashboard

The IUCN Green List launched Version 1.0 of its Standard at the 2016 IUCN World Conservation Congress. Since then, here are some numbers of its collective impact:

61

protected areas meet the IUCN Green List Standard

1/7

Green Listed sites is a World Heritage site*

*Approximate number

600

protected and conserved areas are engaged in the IUCN Green List community*

*Approximate numbers of formally and informally registered sites and networks of sites.

60+

countries are engaged in the IUCN Green List community

Contributing to Global Biodiversity Goals

The IUCN Green List contributes to all of the UN Biodiversity Convention’s Aichi Targets, and most directly to Aichi Target 11: “By 2020, at least 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water, and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem services, are conserved through effectively and equitably managed, ecologically representative and well connected systems of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures, and integrated into the wider landscapes and seascapes.” It is intended also to support new targets and goals that are established for the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.

Find out more

Contributing to Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation

Protected and conserved areas have a critical role to play in mitigating and adaptating to climate change, and in reducing the risk of disasters caused by natural hazards and severe climate events. The IUCN Green List Standard contributes to advancing equitable governance and effective management of protected areas, including embedding climate change mitigation, adaptation and disaster risk reduction elements, through all four components of the standard – Good Governance, Sound Design and Planning, Effective Management, and Successful Conservation Outcomes. Effectively managed protected areas are an essential part of the global and local response to climate change.

Find out more

The Green List advances global Sustainable Development

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides goals for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries in a global partnership. They recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur sustainable economic development – all while tackling climate change, nurturing human health and well-being, and working to conserve our oceans and forests.