Every organization has times of continuity and times of change. For IUCN, the early 1990s have been a period of rapid change, as the Union tries to respond to fast-moving developments in the outside world and to build on the lessons learnt from over 40 years of effort. The Union is also taking advantage of a rare period of administrative stability and financial strength. Over the three years since the General Assembly in Perth, Australia, membership has expanded, the Programme has grown and become more integrated, and a network of IUCN locations now spans the globe. But there is still much further to go.
Decentralization remains uneven.
The programmes are not yet integrated together to the extent they should be. And the scale of IUCN's operations remains wholly inadequate for the scope of the problems they are addressing. In making fundamental changes, the first requirement is to know where you want to go. The Plan would reorient IUCN's work around the precepts of Caring for the Earth and would take account of the outputs of Rio, at that time unknown. The foresight of the General Assembly has proved valid.