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.

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IUCN SSC CPSG Species Conservation Planning Tools Library

The Species Conservation Planning Tools Library is coordinated by the IUCN SSC Conservation Planning Specialist Group (CPSG) in collaboration with the IUCN SSC Species Conservation Planning Sub-Committee.

The Species Conservation Planning Tools Library is a new resource to connect species conservation practitioners to well-tested planning tools suitable for use in a variety of planning situations. This tools library is intended for use by species conservation experts that seek a practical and accessible reference to the many tools and processes available for designing and implementing a detailed and effective conservation planning approach. This resource will continually respond to the needs of the community and the evolving state of the science in the field of endangered species conservation.

The tools library is the product of a CPSG workshop held in Abruzzi, Italy in 2010. The full report from the workshop is available here.

IUCN SSC CPSG Conservation Planning’s PHVA Workshop Process

Complex issues in endangered species conservation planning require creative solutions.

Our Population and Habitat Viability Assessment (PHVA) workshop process – used around the world since the early 1990s – has been designed with this creativity in mind.

A typical PHVA workshop features the scientific rigor of a population viability analysis (PVA) that helps wildlife biologists and managers more clearly understand the threats that influence populations. The PVA effort is combined with innovative methods for helping people organize and evaluate information across a broad range of disciplines and perspectives.

Through this integration, workshop participants create more effective actions for species conservation that also take into account the social, cultural, and economic needs of local people. When local stakeholders help create the action plan themselves, they are much more likely to implement it.

IUCN SSC CPSG Conservation Planning Specialist Group Webinar Series

CPSG runs webinars on topics related to species conservation planning to engage, support, and maintain contact with designers and facilitators of species conservation planning processes worldwide. The webinars are designed to help us to critically review good practice through presentations and discussions with practitioners from a range of conservation-related disciplines.  In particular we are keen to encourage reflection on CPSG’s Species Conservation Planning Principles & Steps and their relevance to improving the status of species worldwide.

IUCN SSC CPSG A Facilitators Guide to Species Conservation Planning

Application of the global standard for Crop Wild Relatives (CWR) in documentation phase for the creation of national inventories

The International Treaty released in 2021 an updated list of passport descriptors for crop wild relatives conserved in situ. This publication provides an international standard to ensure consistency in the way data about plant genetic material of crop wild relatives (CWR) are documented and exchanged around the world.

This booklet is available in English, Arabic, French and Spanish, and is expected to be particularly helpful for researchers, plant breeders, and conservationists worldwide, in addition to national focal points of the International Treaty.

IUCN SSC CPSG Species Planning Principles and Steps

Building global capacity to save biodiversity requires a shared understanding of what effective species conservation planning looks like. CPSG has developed its Species Conservation Planning Principles & Steps document with this in mind. In 7 fundamental principles and 8 practical steps, this document presents a succinct philosophy and framework for good planning based on CPSG’s over 40 years of experience in species conservation planning.

Guidelines for Species Conservation Planning

IUCN SSC CPSG Species Conservation Planning Online Training Course

This is an introductory course to CPSG’s species conservation planning processes and tools. Our target audiences are government wildlife agency staff, IUCN SSC Specialist Group members, and other conservation professionals working in zoos, aquariums, universities or field programs, responsible for the development of species conservation plans. By the end of the course, participants will be able to: apply the CPSG Species Conservation Planning Principles and Steps to the design and facilitation of species conservation planning processes; demonstrate the role of the facilitator in consensus-based decision making; and select facilitation tools to help groups solve problems, make decisions, and develop plans. Click here to find out more about the course and how to apply to an upcoming session.

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.

How to use

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/

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/

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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