ABOUT US
About IUCN
A powerful union.
United for Nature: driving policy and action for people and planet.
1,400+
MEMBERS
IUCN Members include national and subnational governments and government agencies as well as non-governmental and Indigenous Peoples’ organisations from over 160 countries.
17,000+
EXPERTS
Across 7 IUCN Commissions, active networks of scientists and experts from around the world and across a wide range of disciplines provide IUCN with sound know-how and policy advice to drive conservation and sustainable development.
3,500+
RESOURCES
IUCN shares knowledge produced by a unique global community of experts. Resources include databases, tools, standards, guidelines & recommendations. IUCN authors hundreds of books, assessments, reports, briefs and research papers each year.
1,466+
RESOLUTIONS
Members convene every 4 years at the World Conservation Congress to debate major policy issues and approve the IUCN program. A key outcome of these meetings are the Resolutions and Recommendations which guide global conservation efforts.
Vision
A just world that values and conserves nature.
Mission
Influence, encourage and assist societies to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable.
Created in 1948, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is now the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, harnessing the knowledge, resources and reach of our more than 1,400 Member organisations and 17,000 experts.
This diversity and expertise makes IUCN the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it.
The broad membership of IUCN means we can incubate ideas and are a trusted repository of best practices, tools and international standards.
IUCN provides a neutral platform where governments, academics, businesses, NGOs, local communities, Indigenous Peoples and others can work together to solve environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development.
Working with many partners and supporters, IUCN implements a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects worldwide. These projects combine Western science with Indigenous science and the traditional knowledge of local communities to work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being.
IUCN Members, expert Commissions and Secretariat work together in a combined effort to conserve nature and accelerate sustainable development.
Members
IUCN Member organisations set the direction of the work of IUCN, and global conservation efforts more broadly, every four years at the IUCN World Conservation Congress.
Commissions
Seven expert Commissions include thousands of experts from around the world who inform IUCN’s knowledge and help produce its work.
Secretariat
In addition to contributing knowledge, convening and capacity-building work, the Secretariat manages projects worldwide and coordinates support services to Members and Commissions.