30x30 A Guide to Inclusive, Equitable and Effective Implementation of Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework

The document outlines a comprehensive approach to achieving the '30x30' target, emphasizing that numerical expansion must be coupled with qualitative improvements in governance and management. It details a three-phase implementation timeline (Review, Planning, and Implementation), defines key concepts such as OECMs and human rights-based approaches, and provides guidance on integrating biodiversity conservation with climate goals and national policies.

• Achieving Target 3 requires a shift from focusing solely on the quantitative goal of 30% coverage to ensuring qualitative effectiveness and equity. Success is defined by whether areas are located in the most important sites for biodiversity and whether they are 'effectively conserved and managed through ecologically representative, well-connected and equitably governed systems'.
• The guide proposes a three-phase implementation timeline: a short-term 'Review phase' for appraisal and actor identification; a medium-term 'Planning phase' for developing effectiveness and equitable governance processes; and a long-term 'Implementation phase' focused on quality, quantity, and securing assets.
• Implementation must adopt a human rights-based approach (HRBA), which ensures that biodiversity policies do not violate human rights and actively promote them. This includes the requirement for Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) for Indigenous peoples and local communities, particularly regarding their traditional territories.
• Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) are identified as a fundamental building block for Target 3. These are areas that are not formally designated as protected areas but are governed and managed in ways that achieve 'positive and sustained long-term outcomes for the in situ conservation of biodiversity'.
• Global conservation finance must increase significantly to meet Target 3, with projections suggesting a requirement of approximately US$100 billion per year globally, which is roughly US$80 billion more than current levels.
• The workforce required to manage and sustain 30% of the planet is estimated to be at least five times the current number of people working in protected and conserved areas (PCAs).
• Ecological connectivity is critical for the success of Target 3, particularly for species migration and climate adaptation. The guide notes that while 17% of terrestrial areas are recognized as protected or conserved, only 7.84% of these recognized PCAs are connected.
• Inland water ecosystems are highlighted as being severely under-represented in current conservation coverage despite having declined at twice the rate of marine and terrestrial populations since 1970.
• The guide emphasizes the synergy between biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation. Protecting high-biodiversity and carbon-dense ecosystems is described as the 'single most effective mechanism' to provide benefits for both in the short term.
• Effective implementation requires integrating PCAs into wider landscapes, seascapes, and the ocean to address drivers of biodiversity loss outside of protected boundaries, such as pollution and land-use change.

APA

WWF International (2023). 30x30 A Guide to Inclusive, Equitable and Effective Implementation of Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/371/3xun63x8q1_GEFF_FINALv2.pdf

Chicago

WWF International. 30x30 A Guide to Inclusive, Equitable and Effective Implementation of Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. 2023. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/371/3xun63x8q1_GEFF_FINALv2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=WWF International |title=30x30 A Guide to Inclusive, Equitable and Effective Implementation of Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework |date=August 2023 |url=https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/371/3xun63x8q1_GEFF_FINALv2.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wwfinternational202330x30, author = {{WWF International}}, title = {{30x30 A Guide to Inclusive, Equitable and Effective Implementation of Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework}}, institution = {WWF International}, year = {2023}, month = aug, url = {https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/371/3xun63x8q1_GEFF_FINALv2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }