Story | 25 Jan, 2018
How do we know when forest landscape restoration has been achieved?
A principal rationale for restoring a landscape is to return ecosystem services in a way that makes the ecosystem functional and productive while providing for the needs of those who depend on the landscape. There may be some common indicators from restoration efforts that apply to a broad range…
Story | 24 Jan, 2018
Protected area governance in Georgia
A national level governance assessment was recently held in Tbilisi, Georgia, with IUCN leading a three-day workshop convening key stakeholders in Georgia. Representatives of the IUCN Global Protected Areas Programme, the IUCN ECARO Office with Regional Director Mr. Boris Erg, and the IUCN…
Story | 24 Jan, 2018
Innovative and collaborative: The future of plastic waste management in Sri Lanka
Plastic has become an essential part of life nearly everywhere in the world. Its durability, malleability, light weight and low production cost makes it one of the most widely-used material on the planet, which, in turn, has led to equally-widespread consequences for the environment.
Story | 23 Jan, 2018
Ivane Kupradze, a Georgian hero
Ivane Kupradze from Borjomi, Georgia dreamt of becoming a ranger since he was a little boy. Hiking trips with his grandfather inspired him to dedicate his whole life to protecting nature.
Story | 23 Jan, 2018
Georgia, located at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, has renewed its commitment to join the IUCN Green list programme in 2018.
Story | 23 Jan, 2018
IUCN reviews eight World Heritage nominations for 2018
The IUCN World Heritage Panel recently gathered in Gland, Switzerland to review eight natural areas nominated for potential inscription on the World Heritage List in 2018. Among these sites, three are in Asia, two in Europe, while the remaining three are located in North America, South America…
Story | 19 Jan, 2018
A new approach to State Parks in Sonoma County
By Pamela Lanier and Jessica Hughes
After being run by the government since their creation, facing the threat of being closed down after the Great Recession, Jack London State Historic Park and Sugarloaf Ridge State Park in Sonoma County, California (USA) moved to a non-profit run…
Story | 17 Jan, 2018
An economist's view of forest landscape restoration
The Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology has proven effective for countries in planning their restoration actions. A large part of this process consists of comparing the costs and benefits of different restoration options, the consideration of the carbon balance and the analysis of…
Story | 16 Jan, 2018
MOOCs and protected areas capacity building – where we stand
Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are now an undeniable part of the education landscape. Their development really started to take off in 2012 and there are now over 7,000 of them mainly from European and North American universities. MOOCs are a revolutionary opportunity for everyone across the…
Story | 15 Jan, 2018
An analysis of non-state protected area governance in Kenya
By Phil Franks, IIED
IUCN-Papaco and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) conducted a survey of non-State protected areas in Kenya where this type of governance is fairly common. These kinds of governance arrangements deserve to be better known as they may…