A blue start to the year, a new Marine Protected Area joins the IUCN Green List while another one renews its status
Gland, Switzerland, 13 March 2026 — Two Marine Protected Areas set the start of the year for the IUCN Green List. Joining for the first time, Farasan Islands Reserve from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been added to the IUCN Green List of Protected and Conserved Areas, the global standard for effective and equitable area-based conservation. In addition, Malpelo Fauna and Flora Sanctuary, existing Green List site in Colombia has had its status renewed, demonstrating sustained commitment to conservation excellence.
Photo: Farasan Island, Saudi Arabia
Photo: IUCN Green List
Located near the Bab el Mandeb Strait, the Farasan Islands Reserve represents a national priority for marine and island ecosystem conservation. The Reserve maintains strong ecological integrity, reflected in healthy habitats, viable populations of heritage species, and effective ecosystem service delivery. Management integrates protection, conservation, restoration, and education measures, with community traditions reinforcing sustainable resource use.
Meanwhile, Malpelo Fauna and Flora Sanctuary located in the Pacific cost of Colombia, is the ninth largest marine protected area in the world and a natural World Heritage Site, and also an Important Bird Area. It is recognized as a Global Ocean Refuge. This vast marine site is the largest no-fishing zone in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, providing a critical habitat for internationally threatened marine species, and is a major source of nutrients resulting in large aggregations of marine biodiversity.
A growing global movement
With these new listings and renewals, the IUCN Green List continues to expand its global reach, now encompassing over 113 Listings, covering 240+ sites across 23 countries and over 300 applicant and candidate sites in 60+ countries. Each Listed site has undergone rigorous, independent assessment, ensuring it meets the highest standards of conservation effectiveness, equity, and sustainability.
The IUCN Green List serves as a complementary indicator for Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, supporting the global goal of effectively and equitably conserving 30% of the planet's lands and waters by 2030.
IUCN Academy now offers a free, self-paced online course, "Introduction to the IUCN Green List of Protected and Conserved Areas," available in English, French, and Spanish. Whether you manage a protected area or are passionate about conservation, this course equips you with the knowledge and skills to support effective, equitable, and sustainable conservation. Enrol today at https://ow.ly/jvym50XGgVK.
With our partners—the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the French Development Agency (AFD), the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Korea, Esri, the world's leading supplier of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) software, and Huawei—we look forward to scaling up the IUCN Green List as a key metric for 'conservation done well' worldwide.