The IUCN Red List 2021-2030 Strategic Plan

Preventing extinction andadvancing the recovery of
species using The IUCN Red
List of Threatened Species

ENDANGERED
EN

Image credits: Rose Mallee (Eucalyptus rhodantha) © CheongWeei Gan

The IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM is the world’s
most comprehensive source of information on species
and will be used to deliver globally agreed targets on theconservation of biodiversity by 2030.
The IUCN Red List Partnership has identified the workneeded to comprehensively implement and track actions
to stabilize the global decline in biodiversity by 2030 using
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
The high-level targets needed to achieve this goal aresummarized in this document.
Aim
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN Red List)
will drive extensive and effective planning, policy and actionthat leads to the abatement of threats to species and therecovery of populations and habitats.
Biodiversity is the foundation of life,
the many benefits of which include
supporting human health. The IUCN Red
List empowers governments, businesses
and civil society to protect nature andis the most extensive and widely used
global knowledge platform that does this.
ENDANGEREDThe IUCN Red List is mainstreamed into
how the world measures biodiversity
and provides a global species currency
that is trusted and used by all sectors:
global average temperature is used to
track climate change, Gross Domestic
Product is used to measure national
productivity and the IUCN Red List is
used to measure species' extinction risk
and conservation status.

EN

1

Image credits: African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus) © Caroline Edgar

2

Theory of Change
The strategic plan is built around a theory of change which recognizes that the IUCN Red List
has a critically important role to play in shaping the progress towards delivering the post-2020
Global Biodiversity Framework. For the IUCN Red List to drive effective conservation policy
and action, additional investment is needed in the underlying data (species assessments)
and associated capacity (training and technology) so that up-to-date Red List metrics andinformation are made available. This requires continued collaboration through the IUCN Red List
Partnership and greater uptake of the IUCN Red List at the national level. By expanding to coverpriority themes, geographic areas and species, as well as using cutting edge technologies, theIUCN Red List will guide track and catalyse actions that will halt the decline in biodiversity.

Capacity and resources
are sufficient to makethe Red List an effective
resource for conservation
01

Strategic oversight isprovided to the IUCN Red List

02

The IUCN Red List is
sufficiently and sustainably
financed

03

IUCN Red List capacity isimproved at global, regionaland national levels throughmaintenance and expansionof training programmes

The Red List is a robust
system for assessing
species' extinction risk
and recovery
04

05

3

The IUCN Red List makes
effective use of technology
to improve the qualityof Red List data, drive
efficiencies, and enhance
the Red List website
The IUCN Red List, including
the Red List Index and Green
Status, is a scientificallyrigorous tool for conservation

Impact and learning effectively
identified, quantified and fed backto inform strategic planning

The IUCN Red List provides
comprehensive information
on species' extinction risk

The IUCN Red List outputs
are effectively promoted

The IUCN Red List enables
positive conservation
outcomes for biodiversity

06

08

10

07

The IUCN Red List
methodology andassessment process are
increasingly adopted at
the national level

The IUCN Red List
taxonomic and geographic
coverage is expanded, thequality of assessments
is enhanced and thenumber of comprehensive
reassessments is increased09

The Red List index (RLI)
is widely promoted as
an effective biodiversity
indicator, at global, regionaland national scale

The IUCN Red List andits value to conservation
are promoted andcommunicated accurately
and effectively

The IUCN Red List drives
extensive and effectiveplanning, policy and action

Effective policy and action reduce
threats, decreases extinction risk
and promote recovery

Species
extinctions areprevented andrecoveries areadvanced
Impact and Learning
effectively identified,quantified & communicatedProgress
is madetowards thevision of aworld living
in harmony
with nature

4

The IUCN Red List
enables positive
conservation outcomesfor biodiversity
The IUCN Red List drives extensive andeffective planning, policy and action

Target 10
The IUCN Red List is fundamental for
informing policy, planning and action
in delivering positive outcomes forbiodiversity. This is made possible
through the use of species extinction
and recovery assessments on the IUCNRed List. For example, the Red List Index(RLI) tracks extinction risk over time
and the Species Threat Abatement andRestoration (STAR) metric supports theestablishment of science-based targets forachieving global biodiversity targets using
the IUCN Red List. The RLI and STARare important for all sectors of society,including national and local governments,
international conventions, the private andfinancial sectors, civil society conservation
organisations, and donors. The IUCN Red
List is also used to identify Key Biodiversity
Areas, thereby guiding conservation action
and policy to the most important sites forconservation at the global level.

5

The IUCN Red List
outputs are effectively
promoted
The IUCN Red List and its value toconservation are communicatedeffectively and accurately to strengthen
its credibility as the world’s mostauthoritative measure of species’
conservation status Target 9
The IUCN Red List is IUCN’s flagship product.
It represents much of what IUCN is respected
for in one product: reliable data built on
scientific evidence, developed in partnershipwith respected institutions, produced withrigour and crucial for understanding the stateof biodiversity. The IUCN Red List brandis understood by the media and provides
high-impact opportunities for communicating
about biodiversity. It is also used as a data
source in hundreds of influential scientificpublications and derivative products eachyear. Going forwards, communication about
the IUCN Red List must be increasingly aimed
at target audiences so that the fundamentalrole of the IUCN Red List is better understoodand its potential to influence is maximised.

This will be achieved byThis will be achieved by••

Effective communication to target
audiences of the IUCN Red List’s
contribution to conservation•

Communicating the collective impactof the IUCN Red List Partnership•

Maintaining the IUCN Red List’s
scientific credibility and public
reputation

Governments, the conservation
sector, multinational agreements,
business and the finance sector all
implementing policies and actions
that are effectively informed by the
IUCN Red List

The Red List index (RLI) is widely promoted
as an effective biodiversity indicator, at
global, regional and national scale Target 8

Indicators are essential for assessing progress
towards targets addressing biodiversity
loss, such as those in the post-2020 Global
Biodiversity Framework and the United
Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
The Red List Index (RLI) is a biodiversity
indicator that measures the extinction riskof sets of species. RLIs are used by theUnited Nations’ biodiversity-related
conventions and a range of regional andnational policy fora. However, the global
index needs strengthening by including awider range of taxonomic groups (particularly
invertebrate, freshwater, marine, plant andfungi species), allowing it to be disaggregatedthematically and nationally to produce
increasingly policy-relevant and robust indices.
This will require reassessment of groups
that have previously been comprehensively
assessed, assessment and reassessmentof new groups, and reassessment of sampled
groups, in parallel with the production andapplication of appropriate guidelines.

This will be achieved by•Completing 137,000 re-assessmentsof species on the IUCN Red List•

Disseminating the RLI widely
through appropriate web platforms•

Use of RLIs (global, regional,
national and thematic) as indicators
by biodiversity-related conventions,
the Sustainable Development Goals,
global and regional assessments(e.g. GEO, IPBES), national reporting
processes (e.g. CBD, etc.), relevant
institutions, sectors (e.g. fisheries)
and other policy fora

The IUCN Red List
provides comprehensive
information on species'
extinction risk
The IUCN Red List taxonomic andgeographic coverage is expanded,
quality of assessments enhanced,
and the number of comprehensive
re-assessments expanded Target 7

As the only standardised global measureof assessing species' extinction risk, it isimportant that the taxonomic compositionof the IUCN Red List is broadly representativeof biodiversity. The long-term aim istherefore to increase the number of plants,
invertebrates and fungi on the IUCN Red List.
This effort needs to be targeted to delivera meaningful set of new assessments andtherefore needs to be aligned to geographiesthat are currently underrepresented andgroups that have a direct policy relevance orplay important ecosystem functions or are
informative biological indicators. New species
recovery assessments, using the IUCN Green
Status of Species, will incentivize effective
conservation actions and allow recognition of
the many successes that global conservation
has achieved.

This will be achieved by•

Adding 129,000 species to the
IUCN Red List•

Completing Green Status ofSpecies assessments

6

The IUCN Red List methodology andassessment process are increasingly
adopted at the national level Target 6

Given the very high proportions of plantand invertebrate species that are national
endemics, the assessment of extinction
risk of as-yet-unassessed species inthese groups can proceed most efficiently
through national assessments. Moreover,direct interventions at the national level arean effective means for rapidly advancing
both knowledge on threatened species,
and for implementing action to safeguard
threatened species. To accelerate thisknowledge on species' extinction risk bothnationally, regionally, and globally, will require
direct engagement, expansion of Red List
assessment training and data compilation
support to national governments andassociated stakeholders (e.g. civil society).

This will be achieved by
•

•

•

•

7

A minimum of ten pilot countries
developing national Red Lists
following IUCN methodology
supported by IUCN Species Survival
Commission’s National Species
Specialist Groups
At least 25 countries producing anational Red List Index following
IUCN Red List standards
Completing regional Red List
assessments for Europe, theMediterranean and selected FAO
Fishing Areas
Linking the National Red List
Database to the IUCN Red List

The Red List is a robust
system for assessing
species' extinction risk
and recovery
The IUCN Red List including, the Red List
Index and Green Status, is a scientificallyrigorous tool for conservation Target 5

The credibility and scientific rigour of the IUCNRed List is built upon the collation of expertreviewed data and the careful and qualified
application of the IUCN Red List guidelines. It
is essential that all documentation, review andvalidation of assessments are fully compliant
with the appropriate, and regularly updated,guidelines. By ensuring that all assessmentson the IUCN Red List fully comply withthe minimum supporting information
requirements, and fostering as far as possible
careful application of the IUCN Red List
Categories and Criteria and IUCN Green
Status of Species Standard, IUCN seeks toensure that assessments are transparent,
defensible and repeatable, and thereby avoid
criticisms to the contrary. Priorities for the next
decade include updating existing guidance
and producing guidance on new processes
and products.

This will be achieved by••

Updating or creating key
documents for supporting global
Red List and Green Statusassessments
Red List classification schemes
are being reviewed, updated, fully
documented and technologicalchanges implemented

The IUCN Red List makes effective use oftechnology to improve the quality of Red
List data, drive efficiencies, and enhance
the Red List website Target 4

As the IUCN Red List continues toexpand taxonomically, geographicallyand in terms of content (e.g. addition ofGreen Status assessments), as well as
needing to keep existing assessments
current, there are opportunities to use
world-class information technologies to:
improve the quality and consistency of
Red List data; facilitate the assessment
and reassessment process, including
data entry and capture; support the
management and storage of theunderlying data; and facilitate andpromote public use of IUCN Red List
data via improved and enhanced
online search, download and analytical
functionalities. In this regard, a particularly
important advancement will be theneed for the SIS to integrate, under one
umbrella, both spatial and tabular data(requiring GIS technologies to be
mutually compatible with tabular ones).

This will be achieved by•Using new technologies to make
Red List assessments more
efficient, consistent and rigorous•

Improving the architecture andperformance of the IUCN Red List
species database••

Capacity & resources
are sufficient to makethe Red List an effective
resource for conservation
IUCN Red List capacity is improved at
global, regional and national levels throughmaintenance and expansion of training
programmes Target 3

Given the highly important role that the IUCNRed List plays in national, regional, and global
conservation, it is essential that the people
involved fully understand the methodology
and the information required for high-quality
assessments. IUCN has already developeda range of training resources, including an
online course, a training workshop curriculum,
and a network of certified Red List Trainers.
These resources require regular updating
and development to ensure that they reflect
advances in Red List guidance and tools.
Given the distribution of global biodiversity,
there is a particular need to increase Red
List capacity in ‘megadiverse’ developing
countries. This means translating the training
resources and Red List tools into a wider
range of languages, expanding the Red List
trainer network, and developing more training
opportunities to allow Red List specialists toshare their knowledge and experience in an
effective and sustainable way.

This will be achieved by•Disseminating the IUCN Red
List through an improved digital
experience

Increasing the number of people
trained to conduct IUCN Red List
assessments•

Integrating IUCN Red List species
database with external platforms

Increasing the number of qualified
Red List Trainers•

Expanding, updating and translating
IUCN Red List training resources
8

The IUCN Red List is sufficiently andsustainably financed Target 2

Strategic oversight is provided to the
IUCN Red List Target 1

For over 50 years, the IUCN Red List has
served as the global leader in providing
standardised information on species toguide decision-making. This information
is fundamental to governments, the private
sector, regions, cities, communities, andcivil society groups. However, at current
funding levels, IUCN is unable to guarantee
the long-term future of the IUCN Red List.

The IUCN Red List Partnership is convened
by IUCN and draws on the taxonomic
expertise and institutional commitments fromthe Partners to deliver the IUCN Red List andits key products. The IUCN Red List Partners
are institutions that have made a strategic andlong-term commitment to the IUCN Red List.
Each Partner contributes a specific expertiseso that implementation of the strategic planis shared across the partnership. A Red
List Committee serves as the mechanism
for providing strategic oversight to, andgovernance of, the IUCN Red List. The
composition of the IUCN Red List Partnershipneeds to reflect the needs of the IUCNRed List Strategic Plan so that all areas of
implementation are adequately covered.

The chronic under-funding of the IUCNRed List needs to be addressed in thenext decade and it is estimated that atleast $83 million is needed to implement
the Red List Strategic Plan 2021-2030.
Key elements to mobilising the resources
required include a new endowment
fund, enhanced income generated fromthe business and finance sector throughincreased reliance on the data in the IUCNRed List, and a stronger collaborative
approach to philanthropic sources.

This will be achieved byThis will be achieved by•

Securing the IUCN Red List asa strategic priority for IUCN and
Red List Partners••

Increasing collective fundraising capacity by the Red
List Partnership

The Red List Partnership containing
an appropriate suite of institutions
that collectively have the capacity,
skills and reach to implement the
IUCN Red List strategic plan•

Generating income fromfund raising campaigns run
collaboratively by the IUCNRed List Partnership

Each Red List Partner isaccountable for delivering one
or more specific componentsof the Red List Strategic Plan•

Efficient and streamlined
governance and delegatedresponsibility to working groups

•

•

9

Endowment fund established by2023 generates $5 million annuallyfor the IUCN Red List•

VULNERABLE
VU

Timely renewal of Red List
Partnership agreement
Image credits: Indochinese Water Dragon (Physignathus cocincinus) © Michael Cota

10

Approximately 280,000 Red List assessments areneeded in the next decade for the IUCN Red List toeffectively influence and inform actions, decisions
and policy that lead to stabilizing the global decline
in biodiversity by 2030.

All amphibians (currently c. 8,000 species)
are reassessed in 2021 and 2030, withselected groups reassessed in 2026
(total = 20,000 assessments)

All birds (11,100 species) are reassessedby 2022, 2026 and 2030
(total = 33,000 assessments)

CRITICALLYENDANGERED

All freshwater fishes (17,800 species)
are assessed by 2022 and reassessedby 2029 (total = 20,300 assessments)

CR

Image credits: Barbie Pagoda Fungus (Podoserpula miranda) © Christian Laudereau

1112Fungi species, including groups
important for soil health, nutrient
cycling and human livelihoods areadded to the IUCN Red List by 2030
(total = 23,500 assessments)

All cacti, cycads, oaks and conifers(3,700 species) are reassessed by 2030
and a further 56,500 species (including
trees, medicinal plants and orchids) areadded to the IUCN Red List by 2030

Invertebrates, including reassessments of
all 6,300 dragonflies by 2025 and 2030 andswallowtail butterflies (500 species) by 2030;
groups of beetles, butterflies, bumblees,
fireflies, grasshoppers, hoverflies, molluscs
and mayflies, added to the IUCN Red Listby 2030 (total = 77,400 assessments)

All reptiles (9,400 species) are reassessedby 2030, and selected species with highest
probability of category are reassessedby 2027 (total = 10,900 assessments)

All sharks & rays (1,500 species)
are reassessed by 2030
Selected mammal species are reassessedby 2026, and all species by 2030
(total = 6,900 assessments)

Marine fishes (1,600 species including all
blennies, snappers, groupers and tunas) arereassessed by 2028 and a further 8,700
species are added to the IUCN Red Listby 2030

13

Selected invertebrates, including:reassessments of all 6,300 dragonflies
by 2025 and all swallowtail butterflies(500 species) by 2030. Selected groupsof beetles, butterflies, bumblees, fireflies,
grasshoppers, hoverflies, molluscs andmayflies added to the IUCN Red Listby 2030 (total = 77,400 assessments)
Species for which Green Status of Species assessments
should be undertaken are scoped by 2022 and assessments
undertaken by 2030.

14

Resources Required to Implement the IUCN Red List
Strategic Plan 2021-2030
It is a complex task to maintain, update and expand
the IUCN Red List. Significant resources are needed
to implement this strategic plan.

The IUCN Red List Partnership has estimated the cost of full implementation of thestrategic plan to be USD 83 million over ten years. A minimal viable product would
costs approximately US$ 57 million over the same period.

Target Results

Required
BudgetUS$

10 The IUCN Red List informs policy and action

865,000

09 The IUCN Red List is communicated effectively

3,227,000

08 The Red List Index is strengthened and widely promoted

30,431,000

07 The IUCN Red List is expanded and improved

33,527,000

06 The IUCN Red List is used at the national and regional level

6,398,000

05 The IUCN Red List is a scientifically rigorous tool

741,000

04 The IUCN Red List makes effective use of technology

1,730,000

03 The IUCN Red List training programmes are expanded

2,805,000

02 The IUCN Red List is sustainably financed

1,805,000

01 The IUCN Red List receives strategic oversight

3,150,000

GRAND TOTAL (2021-2030)

83,814,000

For over 50 years, the IUCN Red List has
served as the global leader in providing
standardised information on species toguide decision-making. This information
is fundamental to governments,
the private sector, regions, cities,
communities, and civil society groups.
However, at current funding levels, IUCN
is unable to guarantee the long-term
future of the IUCN Red List.

15

The chronic under-funding of the IUCNRed List needs to be addressed in thenext decade and it is estimated that atleast $83 million is needed to implement
the Red List Strategic Plan 2021-2030.
Key elements to mobilising the resources
required include a new endowment
fund, enhanced income generated
from the business and finance sector
through increased reliance on the datain the IUCN Red List, and a stronger
collaborative approach to philanthropic
sources.
16

The IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM is
produced by the Red List Partnership, currently:
ABQ BioPark, Arizona State University, BirdLife International, Botanic Gardens Conservation
International, Conservation International, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN),
Missouri Botanical Gardens, NatureServe, Re:Wild, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Sapienza
University of Rome, IUCN Species Survival Commission, Texas A & M University andZoological Society of London.

Contact
To find out how you can support the
IUCN Red List please contact:
redlist@iucn.org
To donate to the IUCN Red List, please use:
iucnredlist.org/support/donate
17

18

IUCN
Rue Mauverney 28
CH-1196 Gland
Switzerland
Tel: + 41 22 999 0000
Fax: + 41 22 999 0015
www.iucn.org/redlist
www.iucnredlist.org
www.iucnredlist.org/donate© IUCN 2019

The production of this strategic plan was supported by
the IUCN Toyota Red List Partnership