Story | 31 Jul, 2020
The world’s rangers play a vital, but often undervalued role in managing protected and conserved areas, cultural sites and biodiversity. Without them, we would see more deforestation, biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation. Many rangers also protect the resources of people whose lives and…
Story | 31 Jul, 2020
Global Tiger Day 2020: India adopts CA|TS standards across all 50 tiger reserves
This announcement means India is the first among the 13 tiger range countries to nationally adopt CA|TS, which are a set of minimum standards setting the benchmark for managing conservation sites. This brings India’s total number of registered sites to 94 (which includes sites not in tiger…
Story | 31 Jul, 2020
The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on Africa’s protected areas operations and programmes
The measures taken to prevent or control the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic introduced challenges in the management of Africa’s protected areas (PAs) that had never been experienced before. As a result, most operations were scaled down or suspended, visitor facilities closed to the public,…
Story | 30 Jul, 2020
A ranger’s job is more multifaceted than it may appear from the outside looking in. Each day can be different than the previous — mainly because the assignments are so wide-ranging, and, in part, because rangers never know what type of conditions might come their way. Duties can include tour…
Story | 17 Jul, 2020
Blue carbon and more: mangroves as superheroes
Mangrove forests and swamps are nature's superheroes, a vital ecosystem for climate mitigation, adaptation, disaster risk reduction, and many other benefits for humans and animals alike. On this International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem 2020, we present an interactive…
Story | 07 Jul, 2020
Pioneering efforts come to fruition as Global Guidelines for Connectivity Conservation released
The WCPA Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group has completed the first ever global guidelines for advancing best practices to protect the interconnections of protected and conserved areas, and restore degraded or fragmented ecosystems.
Story | 06 Jul, 2020
Deep-sea mining effects may be felt from top to bottom, surface to seabed
Seabed mining effects will probably not be confined to the sea floor, argues a Proceedings of the National Academy (PNAS) journal article from the University of Hawaii, co-authored by IUCN's High Seas Adviser, Kristina Gjerde. The effects will be…
Story | 02 Jul, 2020
#NatureForAll: The sounds of nature
We know that connecting with nature offers many health benefits, from releasing stress to improved mental and physical health. But more and more, we are realizing that simply listening to the sounds of nature can also have similar benefits.
Story | 02 Jul, 2020
The Malpelo Fauna and Flora Sanctuary in Colombia,on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2006, is widely recognised as one of the top diving sites in the world. The sanctuary has now been admitted to the IUCN Green List, the pre-eminent global standard for best practices in protected areas.
Story | 02 Jul, 2020
Sharing Green List experiences from Latin America and the Caribbean
On June 26, for the celebration of the International Day of Tropical Forests, the IUCN Secretariat and the World Commission on Protected Areas organized the virtual discussion “Green List, a future beyond 2020: sharing experiences in Latin America and the Caribbean”. In it, experts and…