Story | 19 Dec, 2013
Travel around the most beautiful places on Earth, for free!
This holiday season, IUCN's World Heritage Programme is offering you a trip around Earth’s natural wonders. Discover the locations of 222 natural World Heritage sites across the planet; let yourself be transported by 3D simulation, and inspired by some amazing photos.
Story | 05 Dec, 2013
Plight of the Polar Bear gets high-level attention
The range states of the Polar Bear – Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia and the United States – today signed a landmark declaration that will strengthen measures to conserve this iconic animal which is classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™.
Press release | 18 Nov, 2013
First-ever Environment and Gender Index ranks 72 countries
Warsaw, Poland 19 November 2013 — Today at the UN climate change conference in Warsaw, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) will release the first-ever Environment and Gender Index which monitors gender equality and women’s empowerment in the environmental arena.
Story | 15 Nov, 2013
Registration now open for the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014
Registration is now open for the IUCN World Parks Congress (WPC), the landmark global forum on protected areas held every 10 years. The event takes place in Sydney, Australia 12-19 November 2014, with the theme 'Parks, people, planet: inspiring solutions' designed to help deliver IUCN’s three…
Story | 14 Nov, 2013
Scientists identify the world’s most irreplaceable protected areas
A new scientific study has identified the protected areas most critical to preventing extinctions of the world’s mammals, birds and amphibians. Resulting from an international collaboration, this analysis provides practical advice for improving the effectiveness of protected areas in conserving…
Story | 27 Oct, 2013
No time to lose for our planet’s “blue heart”
A strong commitment to conserve and sustainably manage the ocean, including areas beyond national jurisdiction, was among the outcomes of the 3rd International Marine Protected Areas Congress, whose ministerial segment closed yesterday in Ajaccio, Corsica.
Press release | 23 Oct, 2013
World nearing 3% of ocean protection
Marseille, France, 24 October 2013 – Marine protected areas now cover 2.8% of the global ocean – an area larger than Europe – according to the official map released today based on data provided by the World Database on Protected Areas, run by IUCN and the United Nations Environment Programme (…
Story | 22 Oct, 2013
Thirty one new Hope Spots - places that are critical to the health of the ocean - were announced yesterday by renowned oceanographer and IUCN Patron Sylvia Earle, a global initiative of the Sylvia Earle Alliance “Mission Blue” and IUCN, with the aim to scale up the marine protection necessary…
Story | 22 Oct, 2013
Marine Natural Heritage and the World Heritage List
Interpretation of World Heritage criteria in marine systems, analysis of biogeographic representation of sites, and a roadmap for addressing gaps.