Biodiversity Indicators Partnership

The Biodiversity Indicators Partnership (BIP) is a global initiative to promote the development, delivery, and use of biodiversity indicators. Its primary role is to delivering indicators to monitor progress toward global and national goals and targets, such as those under the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Convention on Migratory Species, Ramsar, and others. The BIP also supports indicators used in IPBES Assessment reports and for reporting progress towards Sustainable Development Goals. Indicators supported by the BIP are also used by national and regional governments.

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Can we save critically endangered relict endemic plant species? A case study of endemics in Egypt

Rosa arabica and Primula boveana is a perennial endemic to the high mountain area of St. Catherine Protected Area (SCPA) in Egypt and listed as one of the most 100 threatened plants in the world. Recently, they listed as Critically Endangered due to their small Extent of Occurrence and tiny population size (less than 90). The continuous decline in habitat quality for this species and the urgent need to carry out on-ground conservation actions were reported. Many attempts were made in the past to cultivate them in the wild, but they did not succeed. So, this solution aims to conserve them through in situ practices by implementing the following steps, respectively: a) IUCN Red List, b) Ecological Niche Modeling, and c) based on the previous two steps, translocation process for R. arabica in the suitable habitat will be done after carrying out simple layering process (local community traditional method) as one of the most effective traditional vegetative methods for wild cultivation for this species.

USAID biodiversity monitoring guidelines

Biodiversity Indicators Partnership resources

IUCN SSC Species Monitoring Specialist Group Guidelines and Tools

The IUCN SSC Species Monitoring Specialist Group and the IUCN Global Business and Biodiversity Programme have produced Guidelines for Planning and Monitoring Corporate Biodiversity Performance. The Guidelines were developed by IUCN teams in collaboration with business partners, especially Nespresso, Boskalis and Alcoa.

The Guidelines provide a four-stage, science-based approach for developing a corporate biodiversity strategic plan and measuring biodiversity performance across company operations and supply chains. The approach enables companies to be more targeted in their biodiversity focus by identifying the species and habitats important to them and understanding the benefits they provide to people.

CMP Conservation Standards

The Conservation Standards (CS) are a widely adopted set of principles and practices that bring together common concepts, approaches, and terminology for conservation project design, management, and monitoring. Developed by the Conservation Measures Partnership and regularly updated in collaboration with the broader community, this open-source, strategic process helps conservation teams achieve lasting impact.

The CBD Ecosystem Approach (EA)

The Convention on Biological Diversity’s Ecosystem Approach is a strategy for the integrated management of land, water, and living resources to promote conservation and sustainable use in an equitable way. It is the primary framework for such action under the CBD and it contains 12 core principles. The Ecosystem Approach Sourcebook contains a Beginner’s Guide, Advanced Guide, Tools and resources, a Case Study Database, and Operational guidance for applying the 12 principles of the Ecosystem Approach.

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To access the EA Sourcebook and operational guides: https://www.cbd.int/ecosystem/

To download and subscribe to the CBD Ecosystem Newsletter: https://www.cbd.int/ecosystem/ea-newsletters/

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.

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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/

IUCN Guidelines on Reintroductions and other Conservation Translocations

These Guidelines define terms and set out guidance on the justification, design, and implementation of any reintroduction or conservation translocation, including (i) reinforcement and reintroduction within a species’ indigenous range, and (ii) conservation introductions, comprising assisted colonisation and ecological replacement, outside a species’ indigenous range. The Guidelines focus on conservation translocations, namely a translocation that yields quantifiable conservation benefit. For this purpose, the beneficiaries should be the population or the ecosystem of the translocated species. Translocation needs rigorous justification. Feasibility assessment should include a balance of the conservation benefits against the costs and risks of both the translocation and alternative conservation actions. There are multiple  risks in a translocation, affecting the focal species, their associated communities and ecosystem functions in both source and destination areas; there are also risks around human concerns. Any proposed translocation should have a comprehensive risk assessment.

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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.

AEWA International Single and Multi-Species Action Planning Format and Guidelines

These guidelines are produced by the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds. The revised version includes Multi-Species Action as well as making AEWA Plans more implementable, accessible, and practical for implementing agencies. The guidelines also recognise the need for activities to be more targeted and aligned with the set objectives and goals.

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.