International policy

IUCN engages in multilateral policy processes and international environmental forums to provide policy and technical advice to negotiators and key stakeholders to help safeguard the planet and all who depend on it.

IUCN Common Messages to the Rio Convention COPs

Ahead of the start of the meetings of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17), the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP17), and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP31), IUCN presents its common messages for the three Rio Conventions. Through these messages, IUCN urges Parties to intensify efforts and ensure the 2026 COPs deliver concrete outcomes rather than rhetoric, and strengthen mechanisms for implementation, monitoring, and accountability. These messages complement but do not replace IUCN’s specific positions and recommendations contained in its position papers and other policy documents. You can find IUCN’s position paper for UNCCD COP17 alongside other materials in our dedicated webpage here. Position papers for the other two COPs are being developed and will be shared in due course.

Download the IUCN Common Messages to the Rio Convention COPs here

IUCN has a proven track record as a trusted policy and scientific advisor, and in supporting the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals, the Rio Conventions and a number of other biodiversity-related conventions. Our recommendations are based on our extensive on-the-ground experience and scientific expertise.

Sustainable Development Goals

IUCN advocates for nature's role in sustainable development through engagement in the High Level Political Forum and provides reliable science to assist governments and other actors in tracking progress towards meeting the SDGs.

Convention on Biological Diversity

IUCN provides technical and policy advice to the Parties to the CBD and support to the CBD Secretariat for the implementation of the convention and its protocols.

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora

IUCN provides scientific and technical inputs to Parties to ensure international wildlife trade is sustainable and does not threaten species survival in the wild.

UN Framework Convention on Climate Change

IUCN provides scientific and technical inputs to Parties showing both the threats to biodiversity from climate change and nature-based solutions to help address it.

UN Convention to Combat Desertification

IUCN has a long standing partnership with the UNCCD and has actively influenced the evolution of the convention, including development, adoption and implementation of land degradation neutrality.

World Heritage Convention

IUCN is the official advisor on nature to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.

Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ)

IUCN has been engaged in the process towards the adoption of an ambitious treaty by enabling an informed decision-making process.

Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution

IUCN will provide science-based expertise and evidence during the negotiation process and ensure that the focus of the negotiations remains on a robust instrument with high environmental integrity, promoting a circular economy and addressing the full life cycle of plastics.

International policy

IUCN Common Messages to the Rio Convention COPs

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