13th October Look-ahead: IUCN PCA at IUCN Congress 2025

Mentor training: an innovative and experimental program: Attend this session to explore innovative approaches to capacity building in protected area management. Learn from diverse experts, discover the Italian Green List mentors training program, and contribute your perspective to improve future training initiatives. A unique opportunity to share experiences and strengthen collaboration across organizations and regions. 09:00 - 10:00, IUCN Green List 

People, Places, and Partnerships: Africa’s OECM Experience: Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs) hold great potential for Africa by recognizing conservation beyond protected areas. They empower communities, safeguard biodiversity, and integrate sustainable livelihoods. By linking people, nature, and economies, OECMs provide scalable solutions for climate resilience, development, and biodiversity while honouring Africa’s diverse stewardship traditions. 10:00 – 11:00, IUCN Green List

Local grants and regional data through BIOPAMA: empowering leadership from the Caribbean, Africa and the Pacific in global biodiversity action: Participants will discover how BIOPAMA’s data-driven tools, regional observatories, and capacity-building efforts are transforming conservation decision-making. They will gain insights and practical lessons from success stories across the ACP regions that will inspire and empower them to apply innovative, scalable solutions for greater impact in their own conservation work. 11:00 – 11:40, Central Stage – Conservation Action

Resilient Seascapes and Regenerative Blue Economies in the Bay of Bengal Large Marine Ecosystem: This event will present the IUCN report "Towards a Regenerative Blue Economy", which highlights the different strategies and concepts for regenerative blue economy (RBE). Discussions will also include reflections on how this approach can be applied to other sectors and inform the development of national strategies on RBE. 11:00 – 12:00, IUCN Programme 2026-2029 Pavilion, Stage 2

Introducing the Tech4Nature Award winners: Digital innovation for nature conservation: Discover how cutting-edge technology is transforming conservation and join us as we celebrate the winners of the Tech4Nature Award, showcasing innovative solutions that protect species, ecosystems, and empower communities. 11:00 – 11:30, Press Conference Room

Granting Conservation a Chance: Exploring the impact of IUCN's grant-making programmes in empowering conservation actors: Conserving our planet means empowering local actors to pioneer and see through locally-relevant solutions. But how do we ensure resources reach the right grantees, in an efficient manner, and maximise impact? Come to listen, learn and share in the impact of IUCN's grant programmes with grant-makers and grantees alike. 12:00 - 13:30, IUCN Programme 2026-2029 Pavilion, Stage 2

Innovative Actions for Effective and Resilient Freshwater Connectivity and Conservation: We will present the need for urgent innovation contributing to scalable, resilient and effective conservation outcomes aimed to resolve the global freshwater species crisis after decades of neglect. It is essential to find solutions that empower communities with capacity to act and tools to provide for well-connected and healthy systems. 12:00 – 13:00, IUCN Green List

Mapping designated areas across the EU Overseas: Discover how EU Overseas territories are driving global biodiversity action. Through an immersive, interactive map and real stories from the field, this session shows how fragmented efforts connect into a global network, linked to IUCN Green List standards and shaping the future of conservation. 13:00 – 14:00, IUCN Green List

PCA vision for 2030: IUCN's Secretariat value proposition for GBF Target 3: Discover IUCN’s Secretariat vision for Protected and Conserved Areas to 2030 and how its global and regional strategy supports countries in delivering GBF Target 3. Learn about practical tools, partnerships, and pathways to accelerate effective area-based conservation worldwide. 14:00 - 15:00, IUCN Programme 2026-2029 Pavilion, Stage 1

Centring Human Rights and Gender Equity in Protected and Conserved Areas Governance: This session explores translating global biodiversity commitments into tangible results for equitable conservation. Learn to advance gender equity and human rights in protected area governance, bridging the gap between policy and practice. Discover strategies for inclusive participation, transparent decision-making, and access to justice, crucial for effective and sustainable conservation. 14:00 - 15:00, IUCN Green List

Inter-generational Dialogue on Transformative Storytelling: If you are wondering how stories have generationally shaped our outlook in the nature conservation world, this session shows how an inter-generational dialogue, combining classic and digital storytelling, turned maps and memories into powerful tools and bridged generations' dialogue, inspired ownership, and could spark ideas you never expected. 14:00 – 15:00, IUCN Arabia

Why does Animal Culture matter for Conservation?: Learn about culture across species, from bird and whale song, to ungulate migration and tool-use in primates, and IUCN’s related upcoming activities. Explore from diverse perspectives how animal culture can influence foraging, migration and communication and provide new ideas for conservation action. Share how animal cultures influence perspectives on nature. 14:30 – 15:30, Virtual Channel 1

Responsible Tech: Legal and Ethical Considerations of Wildlife and Visitor Monitoring: Gain insights into the latest monitoring technologies for protected areas while understanding the legal, ethical, and social justice dimensions of their use. Contribute to shaping guidelines and frameworks for responsible tech in conservation through interactive dialogue with experts, practitioners, and peers. 15:00 - 16:00, IDEA Campaign and IUCN ENCA

Release Discussion on IUCN WCPA Practice guidance for protected and conserved area finance: This dynamic presentation and panel will provide a powerful introduction to the newly released IUCN WCPA Practice Guidance for Protected and Conserved Area finance with global experts. 15:00 – 16:00, IUCN Green List

The Green List Learning Pathway: Experience from Marine PCAs in the Western Indian Ocean: Why engaging with the IUCN Green List? The Green List is a learning pathway for improving practices towards this global standard for equitable governance and management effectiveness. Listen to Marine PCA practitioners from the Western Indian Ocean who will share their insights and experiences! 16:00 - 17:00, IUCN Green List