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. 2024 May 21;22(5):e3002613.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002613. eCollection 2024 May.

Scaling up area-based conservation to implement the Global Biodiversity Framework's 30x30 target: The role of Nature's Strongholds

John G Robinson  1 , Danielle LaBruna  1 , Tim O'Brien  2 , Peter J Clyne  1 , Nigel Dudley  3 , Sandy J Andelman  1 , Elizabeth L Bennett  1 , Avecita Chicchon  4 , Carlos Durigan  5 , Hedley Grantham  6   7 , Margaret Kinnaird  8 , Sue Lieberman  1 , Fiona Maisels  9   10 , Adriana Moreira  11 , Madhu Rao  1   12 , Emma Stokes  1 , Joe Walston  1 , James Em Watson  13
Affiliations

Scaling up area-based conservation to implement the Global Biodiversity Framework's 30x30 target: The role of Nature's Strongholds

John G Robinson et al. PLoS Biol. .

Abstract

The Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), signed in 2022 by Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, recognized the importance of area-based conservation, and its goals and targets specify the characteristics of protected and conserved areas (PCAs) that disproportionately contribute to biodiversity conservation. To achieve the GBF's target of conserving a global area of 30% by 2030, this Essay argues for recognizing these characteristics and scaling them up through the conservation of areas that are: extensive (typically larger than 5,000 km2); have interconnected PCAs (either physically or as part of a jurisdictional network, and frequently embedded in larger conservation landscapes); have high ecological integrity; and are effectively managed and equitably governed. These areas are presented as "Nature's Strongholds," illustrated by examples from the Congo and Amazon basins. Conserving Nature's Strongholds offers an approach to scale up initiatives to address global threats to biodiversity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Nature’s Strongholds in Central Africa.
KLCs and Nature’s Strongholds in Central Africa (EU identified KLCs numbered, embedded protected and conserved areas constitute the identified strongholds) mapped onto ecological integrity of the region, as measured by the CII. Data layers used are listed in S1 Text. AOI, area of interest; CII, Contextual Intactness Index; EU, European Union; KLC, Key Landscapes for Conservation.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Ecological integrity of Nature’s Strongholds in Central Africa.
Principal component analysis for Strongholds (filled squares, dashed oval) and Central African KLCs (filled circles, solid oval). Principal component 1 (PC1), which is most heavily weighted towards the CII, is plotted against principal component 2 (PC2), which is most heavily weighted towards land area. The ovals highlight the distribution of points in the stronghold class and the KLC class. They serve to easily show the degree of separation and are not a statistical representation. CII, Contextual Intactness Index; KLC, Key Landscapes for Conservation.
Fig 3
Fig 3. Nature’s Strongholds in Amazonia.
Nature’s Strongholds embedded within conservation landscapes in Amazonia, mapped onto ecological integrity of the region. Data layers used listed in S2 Text. AOI, area of interest.
Fig 4
Fig 4. Ecological integrity of Nature’s Strongholds in Amazonia.
Principal component analysis for Strongholds (filled squares, dashed oval) and surrounding conservation landscapes (filled circles, solid oval). Principal component 1 (PC1), which is most heavily weighted towards the CII, is plotted against principal component 2 (PC2), which is most heavily weighted towards land area. CII, Contextual Intactness Index.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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