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Fungi are crucial to nearly all life on Earth, but they are not given the recognition they deserve. Will you join our mission to change that?
Fungi are crucial to nearly all life on Earth, but they are not given the recognition and investment they deserve. Will you join our mission to change that?
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Identify, protect and manage Important Plant Areas.
3 (a) Ensure that important areas for the conservation of plant species and their genetic diversity are identified, well connected and represented within protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures, including in marine and coastal areas.
3 (b) Develop integrated management plans for important areas for plant diversity and implement programmes to ensure that those areas are effectively documented, protected, monitored and sustainably managed, recognizing and respecting the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities, including over their traditional territories.
“The worldwide efforts to define Important Plant Areas (IPA) and Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) can provide a valuable measure of baselines and progress in implementing this Action. An IPA includes the recognition of the importance of plants, algae, fungi, lichens, liverworts, mosses, and wild vascular plants. IPA projects are being implemented in over 70 countries. Other approaches in countries that identify important areas for plant diversity according to criteria other than IPAs or KBAs could also be applied to monitoring this Action. ‘Effectively documented, protected and monitored’ in Action 3b implies that the conservation of the ecosystems and species they contain, and their genetic diversity is being assured or being taken into account. As such, effective and sustainable management and conservation will be achieved by the integration of a variety of conservation approaches, applied at all relevant geographic scales. It is important to note that although information on genetic diversity is not often available, there should be a concentrated effort made to increase knowledge of the genetic diversity of plants (including of crop wild relatives and other socioeconomically important plants) and of finding ways to incorporate and conserve intraspecific genetic diversity in protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures.”
Conserve 30% of Land, Waters and Seas
“Ensure and enable that by 2030 at least 30 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas, and of marine and coastal areas, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, are effectively conserved and managed through ecologically representative, well-connected and equitably governed systems of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures, recognizing indigenous and traditional territories, where applicable, and integrated into wider landscapes, seascapes and the ocean, while ensuring that any sustainable use, where appropriate in such areas, is fully consistent with conservation outcomes, recognizing and respecting the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities, including over their traditional territories.”
IPAs are a well-established and globally recognised tool to help halt species extinction and restore plant and fungi diversity. The identification of an IPA is based on meeting one or more of these 3 criteria:
More than 70 countries across the world are identifying and managing their IPAs to cherish, protect, celebrate and restore their native wild plants and habitats. In many countries IPAs are at the heart of:
The first IPA criteria were developed by Plantlife International in 2001. A Global IPA Network is working to secure IPA recognition and the investment required for every country to identify, protect, restore and celebrate these special areas for plant diversity.
Plantlife- Important Plant Area (IPA) – Plantlife
Explore the other Global Plant Actions
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