Transboundary Conservation Landscapes: Enhancing understanding, operation and efficacy

WWF’s global site-based conservation programs cover vast areas of countries and continents and, via its landscape approach, invariably has large programs that transcend national boundaries be it for species conservation, forest and habitat protection, or to maintain environmental f lows and sustainable use. Past global studies have looked at guidelines and criteria for successful transboundary conservation programs, but a review of practical lessons from the field is lacking. This report reflects on the strengths and challenges of transboundary conservation programs, illustrated by a compilation of lessons from over two decades of work on the ground, and builds on previous knowledge, fills some knowledge gaps, and draws on firsthand practitioners’ experiences from 16 of WWF’s transboundary landscapes across Europe, Africa, Central America and Asia.

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CMS Agreements

International Whaling Commission (IWC) Bycatch Mitigation initiative

As the leading global body addressing cetacean science, conservation and management, the IWC has the capacity to play a significant role in global efforts to address bycatch and in 2016, endorsed a new Bycatch Mitigation Initiative (BMI). In collaboration with other organisations, national governments and fishing communities, this aims to develop, assess and promote effective bycatch prevention and mitigation measures world-wide.

The initiative is currently focused on addressing gillnet bycatch in small-scale fisheries, although some work continues on bycatch in other gears and fisheries.

The concepts of collaboration and co-ordination underpin the BMI. Bycatch is an issue that needs to be tackled on several different scales, from fishing communities to national governments and intergovernmental fishery bodies.

The BMI works closely with the Global Whale Entanglement Response Network (GWERN), a pioneering initiative which actively addresses welfare, conservation and human safety impacts of large whale entanglement in fishing gear and marine debris.

ASEAN Handbook on Legal Cooperation to Combat the Illegal Wildlife Trade

The ASEAN Handbook on Legal Cooperation to Combat Illegal Wildlife Trade 2021 is one of the key deliverables for ASEAN Cooperation in Forestry 2021 and SOM-AMAF’s cooperation in Food, Agriculture and Forestry in 2021. The handbook is also an update of the ASEAN Handbook on Legal Cooperation to Combat Illegal Wildlife 2016 which aims to provide law and policy makers criminal justice officials, and law enforcement officials from the ASEAN region with a strategic approach to deploying an arsenal of hard and soft laws and other associated tools for the prosecution of wildlife crimes. In addition to providing updates and enhancements reflecting legislative and policy changes since 2016, the updated Handbook will incorporate relevant information and policy guidelines on zoonotic diseases and COVID-19, reflecting a One Health Approach, which is the convergence of environmental, animal, and human health, in the context of the illegal wildlife trade.

AEWA Resolution 8.15

Recalling the 8th edition of the Conservation Status Report (document AEWA/MOP 8.19) which shows that 43% of the AEWA populations are in long-term decline including many globally threatened species, and that the causes of such declines, which occur in every flyway, are frequently due to enhanced mortality,

Recalling that AEWA’s Action Plan highlights several causes of actual or potential mortality arising from legal taking, illegal killing, unfavourable or endangering conditions, collisions with and the effects of built infrastructure, disturbance, bycatch, pollution, non-native species, aquaculture, and lead poisoning from fishing weights and gunshot, the regulation of which is desirable to help achieve the objectives of the Agreement,

Recalling also Target 1.6 of AEWA’s Strategic Plan 2019-2027 which seeks that “AEWA priorities relating to four causes of unnecessary additional mortality and other key threats to migratory waterbirds and their habitats1 are integrated in key multilateral processes “, with the delivery of this target envisaging the following actions:

a) Identify those multilateral processes that can contribute most to progressing AEWA priorities (led by Technical Committee in consultation with Secretariat and Partners);

b) Identify strategic opportunities for positively influencing these processes (meetings of technical bodies, working groups etc.) and ensure, as far as possible, that AEWA’s views are represented;

c) Communicate/advocate AEWA priorities in a clear and timely manner;

d) Ensure that AEWA Parties take coherent, mutually reinforcing aligned positions under different conventions and related processes

PANORAMA – Solutions for a Healthy Planet

The PANORAMA platform documents and promotes examples of inspiring solutions on conservation and sustainable development topics. PANORAMA allows practitioners to share their experiences, increase recognition for successful work, and to learn how similar challenges have been addressed around the globe. Over 1200 case studies are presented in a standard format that identifies “building blocks” (key success factors) and the context in which solutions were implemented. Solutions consist of elements that can potentially be replicated or scaled up in other geographic, social, or sectorial contexts. The PANORAMA initiative has many partners. The partnership secretariat is jointly managed by IUCN and GIZ.

Species 360

Species360 is a non-profit NGO working in wildlife care to improve animal welfare and species conservation. It mobilizes a network of more than 1,300 aquarium, zoo, university, research, and governmental members in 102 countries. A central part of is the Zoological Information Management System (ZIMS), the world’s leading resource for the collection and sharing of data on animals, enabling ex situ institutions to manage their collections effectively and contribute valuable information to global conservation initiatives. ZIMS is the world’s most comprehensive knowledge database on more than 22,000 species. In 2022, Species360 expanded its mission to include flora and extend its operations to horticultural record-keeping, with the addition of Hortis – a specialized software for record-keeping and management of botanical collections.

How to use

Information on Species 360, ZIMS, and Hortis is available at: https://species360.org/about-us/about-species360/

To access Species 360 data it is necessary to register: https://species360.org/become-a-species360-member/

Species Recovery Manual for Plants

Botanic Gardens Conservation International and the International Association of Botanic Gardens have jointly published the BGCI and IABG Recovery Manual for Plants to guide projects on plant species recovery. The manual sets out the aims and purpose of species recovery and the steps involved, and indicates good practice. The manual is aimed at conservation practitioners but also includes comprehensive bibliographic references, which enable more in depth reading on the topics covered.

The Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC)

The GSPC – A Plan to Save the World’s Plant Species – highlights the importance of plants and the ecosystem services they provide for all life on earth, and aims to ensure their conservation. The GSPC includes 16 targets for plant conservation. An updated GSPC was formally adopted at the 10th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD.

CPSG Species Conservation Planning Tools

The IUCN SSC Conservation Planning Specialist Group (CPSG) has developed several tools and resources to support planning. Teams are available to support this approach, including the use of modelling tools. Training in species conservation planning tools and processes is available through a combination of in-person and online courses. Training results in a certificate of completion. Extended mentoring opportunities also exist.

The One Plan Approach: requires that all available resources, all stakeholders and all populations of a species, are considered in conservation planning process. This approach is particularly effective at bringing together ex situ and in situ wildlife conservation practitioners and tools. Through CPSG, teams are available to support groups to apply this approach, which may include the application of the IUCN SSC Ex situ Guidelines as well as databases and modelling tools produced and maintained through key partners such Species360 and the Species Conservation Toolkit Initiative.

Population and Habitat Viability Assessment (PHVA): is a specific approach that integrates population viability analysis (PVA) into stakeholder-inclusive, multi-disciplinary planning projects. The PVA element helps all stakeholders to understand more a species’ life-history, threats, and the likely efficacy of potential conservation strategies. Facilitator-modeller teams are available through CPSG, to support groups to apply this approach.

Assess to Plan (A2P): is a process designed to bridge the gap between Red List assessment and conservation planning, for speciose groups. Using Red List data, assessors and other experts identify pathways to conservation action for taxa assessed as Threatened or Data Deficient. Outputs include recommendations for further planning or action for multi-species groups of taxa that can be expected to respond favourably to the same kinds of conservation action taken in the same areas and/or by the same groups of conservation actors.

Living Planet Index (LPI)

The Living Planet Index measures the state of the world’s biodiversity based on population trends of vertebrate species from terrestrial, freshwater, and marine habitats. The LPI has been adopted by the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD) as an indicator of progress towards its targets. The LPI is compiled by WWF and ZSL based on trends in thousands of population time-series data collected from monitored sites around the world. The Living Planet Database contains population time-series data on the abundance of tens of thousands of vertebrate species between 1970 and 2021. It is publicly available, except for some confidential records that cannot be shared.

How to use

The annual Living Planet Report can be downloaded at: https://www.wwf.org.uk/our-reports/living-planet-report
The latest results and the technical supplement are available at: https://www.livingplanetindex.org/
Data in the Living Planet Database can be searched or downloaded at:

https://github.com/Zoological-Society-of-London/rlpi

The CA|TS Report 2022: 10 years of Conservation Assured Tiger Standards

Conservation Assured | Tiger Standards (CA|TS) started with a simple aim – tocontribute to the many efforts around the world to secure wild tigers. But such tasks are never so simple to implement. Developing CA|TS over the last ten years has involved a huge collaborative effort in standard setting, advocacy, software development, training, fundraising and much more. For the sites and people involved it has represented a major commitment in supporting national systems to implement CA|TS.

This report tells the story of the CA|TS journey from an idea to a global partnership of countries, sites, experts and conservation organisations implementing this mission across the tiger range.

IWC Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling Management Programme (ASWMP): science-based management of aboriginal whaling activities

In some parts of the world, whale products play an important role in the nutritional and cultural life of native peoples. Four IWC member countries conduct aboriginal subsistence hunts today: Denmark (Greenland), Russia (Chukotka), St Vincent and the Grenadines (Bequia) and the United States (Alaska and also potentially a resumption of hunts previously undertaken by the Makah Tribe of Washington State).

From the outset, the IWC recognised that indigenous or aboriginal subsistence whaling is not the same as commercial whaling. Aboriginal whaling does not seek to maximise catches or profit. It is categorised differently by the IWC and is not subject to the moratorium. The IWC recognises that its regulations have the potential to impact significantly on traditional cultures, and great care must be taken in discharging this responsibility.

In summary, the IWC objectives for management of aboriginal subsistence whaling are to ensure that hunted whale populations are maintained at (or brought back to) healthy levels, and to enable native people to hunt whales at levels that are appropriate to cultural and nutritional requirements in the long term.