The IUCN World Conservation Congress, held in Amman, Jordan, between 4 and 11 October 2000, reported that the loss of biological species has assumed dramatic speed and magnitude as more species move into the critically endangered category or go extinct.
Scientists believe that hundreds of thousands more are at risk.
The world's largest environmental gathering in the year 2000 sought ways to fight the extinction crisis, now threatening future human welfare. The Congress concluded its 8-day session with the approval of an ambitious new IUCN Action Plan and Programme, to combat the intertwined problems of species loss and ecosystem integrity. We have the knowledge, technology and human resources to avert the extinction crisis. What is missing is the political commitment to use them and to invest in them in the interest of future generations. Delegates from 143 countries in IUCN s unique partnership between government and civil society, together with representatives from its network of 10,000 scientific experts from 181 countries, agreed on an innovative programme of action across countries and in the oceans, to save terrestrial and marine ecosystems and help stem the rising tide of extinction.