Motion 018

Despite the critical importance of rivers to biodiversity, livelihoods, and cultures, rivers are not represented on the global conservation map. This omission is consistent with the fact that protected and conserved areas rarely emphasize riverine ecosystem health (Abell et al., 2007). Thus, consistent with IUCN’s 20-year Vision, the GBF, Paris Agreement, and other multilateral accords, this motion is intended to: 1) elevate the recognition of river protections; and 2) narrow the global gap in river conservation.

This motion is timely. Freshwater biodiversity is in peril and decline, and future threats are most pronounced for species and ecosystem services dependent on riverine ecosystems and their ecological processes (Piczak et al., 2023; Sayer et al., 2025). Monitored populations of aquatic megafauna have declined by 88 percent (He et al., 2029), mega-fishes by 94 percent, and migratory fish populations that require connected and flowing rivers to move between marine and freshwater environments by 81 percent (Deinet et al., 2024). Meanwhile, one third of the global food resource depends on rivers, and globally 40 percent of fish protein comes from freshwater fishes (FAO, 2020). Rivers are the integrators of land and sea. Adopting river-specific conservation strategies can have reciprocal benefits across all realms, support lifeways and endangered cultural values, build climate resilience, and sustain critical biodiversity and ecosystem services (Perry et al., 2024).

This motion aims to augment the World Database on Protected Areas, World Database on OECMs and Protected Planet reporting by including tracking coverage of protected and conserved rivers and streams consistent with the GBF monitoring framework and recent CBD and IUCN guidance (IUCN WCPA Inland Waters 2024). Coordination across IUCN, UNEP-WCMC, GRPC and other NGOs and civil society organizations will accelerate information sharing and centralize knowledge on river protections, as aligned with GBF Target 3 attributes including systems of protected and conserved areas that are effectively managed, well-connected, ecologically representative and equitably governed.

The motion also supports IUCN’s 20 year vision commitment to “water security and stewardship” focused on “improving land use planning and use of protected and conserved areas to safeguard freshwater resources, including free flowing rivers,” and “advocating for improved infrastructure planning and regulation in river systems” as well as “equitable river basin planning and governance.” Other key activities include alignment of national protected and conserved area policies to effectively represent, conserve, and manage rivers. This is consistent with the GRPC’s Principles of Free-flowing River Protection, Restoration, and Management: https://www.riverprotection.org/principles-of-free-flowing-river-protection-restoration-and-management

The proponent and Co-Sponsors will collaborate with the GRPC and other organizations to collect, curate, and map data on the tracking dashboard. ESRI will provide technical advice on the creation of this dashboard where the global “system” will be visualized. IUCN has the technology license so there is no additional cost to build or host this dashboard. Spatial analysis experts within the GRPC and other co-sponsors have the capacity to work on the dashboard as well as to contribute to the other activities associated with this motion.