Insights Invited COB 5/29 – Transformative Conservation in Social-Ecological Systems

Over the past year or so, a small team of us worked on a discussion paper on transformative conservation (click here to view/download) for the 2020 World Conservation Congress (now postponed to January 2021). (We are members of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Commission on Ecosystem Management.) The paper will provide the basis for a few events at the Congress, and draws heavily on political ecology as well as resilience thinking.

In the paper we argue that transformative conservation

• Rethinks the relationships between nature, society, individuals, and risk in light of nature’s contributions to people, equity and justice, and sustainable development goals;
• Restructures systems to create durable change at large geographic, ecological, political-economic, and demographic scales; and
• Ultimately conserves biodiversity while justly transitioning to net negative emissions economies and securing the sustainable and regenerative use of natural resources.

By close of business on Friday, May 29, we are inviting anyone interested to comment on the paper and provide insights. We welcome your input!

This is the survey link; once you’ve skimmed or read or skim-read the paper, the survey is expected to take 5-10 minutes. Your responses will inform how we can

• Promote common understanding and language
• Contribute to the movement
• Advance mutually beneficial work — for example, the IPBES Transformative Change Assessment, the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, the Sustainable Development Goals, and nature-based solutions

The four questions on which we invite your feedback are

1. What issues in the paper interest you the most?
2. In the work you do, where do you see the greatest need for systems thinking and transformative change?
3. How could we best help you to practice systems thinking and transformative conservation?
4. What are the best opportunities for synergy and alignment with ongoing international initiatives?

We look forward to hearing from you! Again, this is the survey link, responses are requested by COB Friday, May 29, 2020.

Questions, concerns, or recommendations? Please email Dorian Fougères fougeres@gmail.com, vice-chair for the Resilience Thematic Group of the IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management.