International Union for Conservation of Nature

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization and the world’s largest and arguably most important conservation network. It was founded in Fontainebleau, France in 1948 and its headquarters is located in Gland, Switzerland. IUCN has offices in more than 45 countries and runs hundreds of projects around the world, including a multilateral office located in Washington, DC that serves as a global embassy for IUCN. It plays a critical role in the conservation of nature as a knowledge-producing organization (IUCN, UNEP & WWF 1980, 1991). Its vision is achieving a “world that values and conserves nature” and its mission is to influence, encourage, and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable. According to its official homepage, IUCN helps the world find pragmatic solutions to our most pressing environmental and development challenges. IUCN supports scientific research; manages field projects all over the world; and brings governments, nongovernmental organizations, United Nations agencies, companies, and local communities together to develop and implement policy, laws, and best practice. IUCN is a democratic membership union that includes 87 nation-states, 120 government agencies, and more than 821 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). In addition it has 11 714 scientists and experts from 181 countries in its six commissions in a unique worldwide partnership. These are the Commission on Education and Communication (CEC, 625 members), Commission on Environmental, Economic and Social Policy (CEESP, 1061 members), Commission on Environmental Law (CEL, 800 members), Commission on Ecosystem Management (CEM, 400 members), Species Survival Commission (SSC, 7528 members), and World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA, 1300 members). These commissions contribute to the conservation of nature through action projects to research in their respective fields. In addition to these six major commissions, which include conservation-related international organizations, nongovernmental organizations, civil society organizations, academic institutions, indigenous groups, and individual conservation experts and activists, there are also several groups working in specific subfields. The IUCN Council is the principal governing body of IUCN in between sessions of the World Conservation Congress, the general assembly of the Union. The Council is responsible for oversight and general control of all the affairs of IUCN, subject to the authority of the World Conservation Congress. IUCN member organizations elect the Council every four years at the World Conservation Congress. Along with a President, Treasurer, and three representatives from each of the Union’s eight regions, the Council also includes the chairs of the six commissions. The Council functions in a similar way to a Board of Directors, meeting once or twice a year to direct Union policy, approve finances, and decide on strategy. The Council can appoint up to six additional Councilors. IUCN is a unique organization, formed by the secretariat, the members, and a diverse group of experts coming from various sectors. IUCN members (particularly commissions) hold different backgrounds. Most importantly, because of its working modality IUCN is not solely an international NGO, but it is also not an international governmental organization. That is, it follows the laws and regulations of member nations and does not work for or against particular national