Story | 03 Oct, 2016
Blog: 'Can’t see the water for the trees?' By James Dalton et al.
Originally published in Global Water Forum, Monday 3 October 2016. To maximise downstream water quantity, you remove vegetation – all of it, including the trees. To counter rising carbon dioxide levels, you plant trees – lots of them. How should we do both?
Story | 08 Jul, 2016
Judges Establish the Global Judicial Institute for the Environment
Coinciding with the 1st IUCN World Environmental Law Congress, judges from 15 different countries gathered in Brazil in April 2016 for the inauguration of the Global Judicial Institute for the Environment (GJIE). On April 23-24, 2016, judges and other environmental law experts came together to…
Story | 22 Jun, 2016
New Publication: Framework for Assessing and Improving Law for Sustainability
Despite a proliferation of legal instruments related to the environment, environmental challenges such as ecosystem degradation, climate change and species loss continue to accelerate. At local, national and global scales, environmental legal systems are not consistently achieving the goals for…
Story | 14 Apr, 2016
Exposing illegal trade in elephant tusks
Following a seizure of ivory, a suspected illegal trader has been sentenced to imprisonment. Paul de Ornellas of the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), a grantee with IUCN’s SOS initiative, explains how ZSL helped expose the crime.
Story | 04 Mar, 2016
Getting SMART about tackling wildlife crime on the frontline.
With illegal wildlife trade being a core issue of the upcoming IUCN World Conservation Congress 2016, the role and value of SMART conservation software is pertinent. Marking World Wildlife Day March 3 2016, we travel to the Okapi Faunal Reserve in Democratic Republic of Congo to learn more about…
Story | 01 Feb, 2016
World Wetlands Day: Wetlands & Sustainable Livelihoods
Each year, 2 February marks World Wetlands Day, to celebrate our planet’s wetlands but also to draw attention to the challenges that their degradation brings.
Story | 07 Jan, 2016
The List of World Heritage in Danger is not a disgrace, but an opportunity
A key success of 2015 was the removal of Colombia’s Los Katíos National Park from the List of World Heritage in Danger. It was danger-listed in 2009 at the request of the government, after suffering extensive damage from illegal activities. The park authority has now regained control of the site…
Story | 05 Jan, 2016
Why the new policy on sustainable development for World Heritage is a crucial step forward
Towards the end of 2015, the States Parties to the World Heritage Convention adopted a policy on sustainable development. This is a major step in ensuring that World Heritage sites contribute to socioeconomic well-being in a sustainable manner with long-term positive effects, both for the…
Story | 22 Nov, 2015
Valuing natural capital key to tackling climate change – says IUCN
Edinburgh, UK, 23 November 2015 -- IUCN Director General Inger Andersen highlighted the vital role of natural capital in addressing climate change in a…
Press release | 19 Nov, 2015
A global re-assessment of polar bears highlights loss of sea ice habitat due to climate warming as the single most important threat to the long-term survival of the species, according to the latest update of The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ released today by IUCN, International Union for…