Without space to thrive, species are lost. That negatively impacts other species on which they depend and undermines systems that support humans, such as the provision of water, clean air and food. Large natural areas represent nature-based solutions to climate change, both helping to extract carbon from the atmosphere as well as protecting against the impacts of climate change.
Fortunately, there are multiple ways in which sites around the world can be better protected and conserved. The principal way that was recognised internationally, until recently, is protected areas. Protected areas, which are sites dedicated to the conservation of biodiversity, help reduce the human impact on sites deemed important for biodiversity. There are now over 300,000 protected areas worldwide, providing space for nature to exist with low levels of disturbance.
In 2010, Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity agreed that it was also necessary to better recognise and support sites outside protected areas that deliver the long-term conservation of biodiversity, referring to these sites as “other effective area-based conservation measures”, or “OECMs” for short.
The criteria for identifying OECMs was agreed in 2018, and there are almost 6,500 sites reported to the World Database from around the world, covering nearly 200 million hectares and making contributions to the 30x30 target. To address misconceptions about OECMs, IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas has developed guidelines and an assessment tool.
As governments and other actors work towards the 30x30 target, it is important that they use all available means to advance conservation. While it is critical that governments and other actors strive to identify, report, monitor and strengthen OECMs, it is equally important they adequately resource existing protected areas to support their governance and management, as well as designate new protected areas.
A recently published guide and online toolkit supports diverse actors to apply the most up-to-date approaches to area-based conservation to ensure that any activities towards the 30x30 target in protected areas and OECMs, including the recognition of Indigenous and traditional territories, are inclusive, equitable and effective.
More information on protected areas can be found on the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) website, and about OECMs on IUCN WCPA’s Specialist Group on OECMs web pages.
Photo Credit:
Vishnu P, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
