Abstract
In 2010, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) outlined an international strategic plan, which included the twenty Aichi Biodiversity Targets to be met by 2020. Target 12 refers to preventing extinctions and halting species declines. Despite some local conservation successes, this target is not on track to be met at the global level. We aimed to understand what is needed to achieve this target according to two invested but contrasting groups: species conservation experts and global conservation policy makers. We surveyed a diversity of species conservation experts and contrasted their views with those of policy makers engaged with CBD. Species experts considered that the greatest need was for increased political will, while policy makers most frequently cited the need for increased knowledge of species conservation status. Both groups did, however, emphasise that achieving species conservation targets requires greater progress to be made towards many of the other Aichi Targets. We suggest that improved communication, collaboration and data sharing among institutions should be a priority to help overcome the perceived knowledge-gap. Doing so could help to align the views of practitioners and policy makers, and develop a shared understanding of the key actions needed to accelerate progress towards global biodiversity targets.
Highlights
We identified a range of potential actions and outcomes using a scoping exercise carried out during a workshop at the IUCN’s Species Survival Commission Conservation Planning Specialist Group (CPSG) annual meeting 2017
Grouping countries into IPBES global regions, the largest number of responses were from those working in Western Europe and other (32.2%) and the fewest from Eastern Europe (5.0%; Figure S1a)
The conservation status of species is declining globally (Ceballos et al 2017; IPBES 2019), and both species conservation experts and policy makers highlighted that a diverse range of actions are required to prevent further declines and extinctions, and improve progress towards international conservation targets
Summary
This included twenty Biodiversity Targets, named the ‘Aichi Targets’ after the location where they were negotiated, which 196 Parties (195 countries and the EU) committed to achieving by 2020. Aichi Target 12 refers to the conservation of threatened species, and states that “By 2020 the extinction of known threatened species has been prevented and their conservation status, of those most in decline, has been improved and sustained” (CBD 2010). Species extinctions continue to occur and the conservation status of. Threatened species continues to decline (Ceballos et al 2017; Woinarski et al 2017). It is essential to increase our understanding of what is needed to improve progress towards this target and, to improve threatened species’ conservation status beyond 2020
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