Two Australian nominees elected to the IUCN Council

We are thrilled to announce that two nominees from Australia - Erica McCreedy and Bláthnaid Byrne - have been elected to the IUCN Council at the World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi.

The IUCN Council is the principal leadership and governing body of IUCN.

Erica will represent Oceania and Australia on the Council, and Bláthnaid will oversee the finances of the organisation as the IUCN Treasurer.

Dr Anita Tzec, Erica McCreedy and Onel Masardule Arias at the 2025 IUCN World Conservation Congress

Bláthnaid Byrne

Erica and Bláthnaid are preceded by outgoing IUCN Councillor Peter Cochrane, who was elected to represent Oceania at the 2016 World Conservation Congress in Hawaii.

Peter Cochrane at the 2025 IUCN World Conservation Congress

Peter Cochrane was re-elected as an IUCN Councillor in 2021 and soon after that was appointed as IUCN Vice President.

We sincerely thank Peter for his 9 years of exceptional leadership and service on the IUCN Council and the ACIUCN Board.

We also commend Peter for his monumental contribution to nature conservation globally and locally. We wish him all the very best, and we hope to continue connecting and collaborating with Peter in the future.

About Erica McCreedy

Erica is a proud Ngāti Raukawa and Te Aitanga-a-Hauiti woman and the Chief Operating Officer of the North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance.

Erica is committed to elevating Indigenous voices in global conservation, strengthening Indigenous-led conservation, supporting regional collaboration, and ensuring that Indigenous knowledge systems are recognised and respected in global environmental governance.

Her work will focus on building bridges between communities, policy makers, and scientific institutions - grounding decision-making in Country, culture, and climate resilience.

Read more about Erica:

https://iucncongress2025.org/candidates/erica-mccreedy-position-councillor-elected-region-oceania

About Bláthnaid Byrne

Bláthnaid brings 20 years of experience as a corporate treasurer across a range of industries, including several years as Treasurer for the IUCN Australian Committee. This role deepened her understanding of IUCN’s mission and the importance of strong financial governance in supporting conservation outcomes. She is a Chartered Treasurer with the UK’s Association of Corporate Treasurers and a Fellow of the Australian Corporate Treasury Association - an honour awarded in recognition of her professional contribution and leadership, particularly in promoting diversity.

She founded the Women in Treasury network in Sydney to support women’s career development and build professional communities, reflecting her belief in inclusive leadership. Currently, she lead global engagement (across NGOs, FIs and the public sector) at the Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI), where she uses her treasury and financial expertise to support the shift of capital flows towards climate-positive investments.

Read more about Bláthnaid:

https://iucncongress2025.org/candidates/blathnaid-byrne-position-treasurer

Welcoming 5 new members

The IUCN Australian Committee is pleased to announce 5 new members, including 4 IUCN member organisations and 1 Associate Member.

Congratulations and welcome to the four Australian organisations who have recently been approved for IUCN membership:

• Australian Land Conservation Alliance - Australia’s peak national body representing organisations that work to conserve, manage, and restore nature on private land.

• Environmental Justice Australia - A public interest legal organisation for a radically better world

• 4Nature - A not-for-profit organisation seeking to ensure that the natural environments of Australia and the South Pacific survive and thrive

• The Minderoo Foundation - An Australian philanthropy, working to forge a fair future by courageously challenging inequalities and campaigning for meaningful change.

Our four new IUCN member organisations are eligible for full participation, including voting rights, at the World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi in October.

And a warm welcome to our newest Associate Member:

Fungimap Inc - a not-for-profit registered charity, dedicated to recording and mapping fungi in Australia, spreading the word about the essential role of fungi in biodiversity, and advocating for fungal conservation and investment in mycology.

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What it means to be a member of IUCN

IUCN membership includes governments and civil society organisations, united under the common goal of protecting nature and conserving life on Earth.

Through their affiliation with IUCN, Member organisations convene and influence diverse stakeholders at the highest level globally, all in support of nature conservation. They are also part of a democratic process, voting on Resolutions and Recommendations to drive the global conservation agenda.

Furthermore, as an official United Nations Observer, IUCN ensures that nature conservation has an influential voice at the highest level of international governance.

IUCN’s expertise and extensive network also provides a solid foundation for a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects around the world. Combining the latest science with the traditional knowledge of local communities, these projects work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being. They also produce a wealth of data and information which further feeds into IUCN’s analytical capacity.

The value of working together as a Union cannot be understated, or reproduced. IUCN’s history is built on the results of Members putting knowledge, influence and execution to work for a more sustainable future. 

Wrap-up: Species Survival Symposium

A bomb cyclone hit the east of Australia on July 1st, but not even a catastrophic weather event was able to stop dedicated protectors of nature from attending our Species Survival Symposium starting on July 2nd.

Despite the havoc, cancelled flights, and transport chaos, over 140 people from all sectors still made it to Taronga Zoo to address the challenges of achieving No New Extinctions and driving species recovery in Australia.

We are also grateful to the 70+ people who participated online and via the livestream.

Coming up next:

Video clips from the livestream will be uploaded to this youtube playlist:

Powerpoint slides from the presentations will be uploaded and shared on the event webpage: https://www.aciucn.org.au/species-survival-symposium

Final report: we are currently compiling all of the insights, recommendations and feedback from participants, and we will release a report of these findings soon.

In the meantime, thank you again to all of our sponsors, partners, presenters, facilitators, collaborators, and all of our attendees for joining us and helping us deliver this critically important and urgent gathering.