Key Biodiversity Areas: review and lessons learned workshop Five years of Key Biodiversity Areas Churchill Hotel, Washington DC 25 July 2006

The importance of local ownership of global standards for conservation outcomes in CI

 Local ownership because the closer to the ground planning occurs, the better the link to implementation

The importance of local ownership of global standards for conservation outcomes in CI  Local ownership because the closer to the ground planning occurs, the better the link to implementation  Global standards because CI is a global organization, accountable to global donors, and so must be able to compare between regions and over time

The importance of local ownership of global standards for conservation outcomes in CI  Local ownership because the closer to the ground planning occurs, the better the link to implementation  Global standards because CI is a global organization, accountable to global donors, and so must be able to compare between regions and over time  Targets for conservation outcomes to justify strategy and provide baseline for monitoring

Species Extinctions Avoided Sites Areas Protected Sea/Landscapes Corridors Consolidated Increasing scale of ecological organization Genes Biosphere KeyBiodiversityAreas

Key Biodiversity Areas are…

 Sites of global significance for biodiversity conservation

Key Biodiversity Areas are…  Sites of global significance for biodiversity conservation  Targets for ‘Areas Protected’ biodiversity conservation outcomes for CI

Key Biodiversity Areas are…  Sites of global significance for biodiversity conservation  Targets for ‘Areas Protected’ biodiversity conservation outcomes for CI  Identified by CI CBCs, regional programs, and partners, using globally standard criteria and thresholds

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:  “site” ( not grid cells)

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:  “site” ( not grid cells)  “occurrence” ( not modeled predictions)

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:  “site” ( not grid cells)  “occurrence” ( not modeled predictions)  “data” ( not expert opinion)

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:  “site” ( not grid cells)  “occurrence” ( not modeled predictions)  “data” ( not expert opinion)  “species” ( not environmental surrogates)

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:  “site” ( not grid cells)  “occurrence” ( not modeled predictions)  “data” ( not expert opinion)  “species” ( not environmental surrogates)  “conservation significance” ( not species richness)

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:  Vulnerability (globally threatened species)

Key Biodiversity Areas are… Identified following standard criteria using site occurrence data for species of conservation significance:  Vulnerability (globally threatened species)  Irreplaceability (>X% of global population of a species) - start with restricted-range species - congregations - …

Key Biodiversity Areas are not …

 Necessarily protected areas, although many are, and many more should be

Key Biodiversity Areas are not …  Necessarily protected areas, although many are, and many more should be  The “only” scale at which biodiversity conservation is urgent – they must often be complemented by targeting species specific (e.g., invasive species control) and sea/landscape scale (e.g., biodiversity conservation corridors) outcomes

(Ancient) history of KBAs… Early ‘80s BirdLife International (then ICBP) developed “Important Bird Areas” (IBAs)

(Ancient) history of KBAs… Early ‘80s BirdLife International (then ICBP) developed “Important Bird Areas” (IBAs) Mid ‘90s Plantlife International developed “Important Plant Areas” (IPAs)

(Ancient) history of KBAs… Early ‘80s BirdLife International (then ICBP) developed “Important Bird Areas” (IBAs) Mid ‘90s Plantlife International developed “Important Plant Areas” (IPAs) 2000 on Important Freshwater /Mammal/Herp /Butterfly /Dragonfly Areas…

(Ancient) history of KBAs (cont)…  …so, importance of unifying these multiple taxon- specific initiatives to avoid duplication of effort and confusion

(Ancient) history of KBAs (cont)…  …so, importance of unifying these multiple taxon- specific initiatives to avoid duplication of effort and confusion  IBAs therefore become the bird subset of KBAs, IPAs the plant subset of KBAs, etc

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale ) AZE develops to identify and conserve the “tip- of-the-iceberg” of KBAs

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale ) AZE develops to identify and conserve the “tip- of-the-iceberg” of KBAs 2) World Parks Congress: demand for KBAs for gap analysis

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale ) AZE develops to identify and conserve the “tip- of-the-iceberg” of KBAs 2) World Parks Congress: demand for KBAs for gap analysis ) RPD publishes CI Strategy Handbook laying out institutional KBA methodology

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale ) AZE develops to identify and conserve the “tip- of-the-iceberg” of KBAs 2) World Parks Congress: demand for KBAs for gap analysis ) RPD publishes CI Strategy Handbook laying out institutional KBA methodology 2) MacArthur fund multi-institutional KBA workshop

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale ) AZE develops to identify and conserve the “tip- of-the-iceberg” of KBAs 2) World Parks Congress: demand for KBAs for gap analysis ) RPD publishes CI Strategy Handbook laying out institutional KBA methodology 2) MacArthur fund multi-institutional KBA workshop 3) Eken et al. published

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale ) AZE develops to identify and conserve the “tip- of-the-iceberg” of KBAs 2) World Parks Congress: demand for KBAs for gap analysis ) RPD publishes CI Strategy Handbook laying out institutional KBA methodology 2) MacArthur fund multi-institutional KBA workshop 3) Eken et al. published ) Marine KBAs workshop

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale ) AZE develops to identify and conserve the “tip- of-the-iceberg” of KBAs 2) World Parks Congress: demand for KBAs for gap analysis ) RPD publishes CI Strategy Handbook laying out institutional KBA methodology 2) MacArthur fund multi-institutional KBA workshop 3) Eken et al. published ) Marine KBAs workshop 2) International launch of AZE, signed off by >50 organizations

(Recent) history of KBAs… 2002 CI pioneers quantitative framework for defining biodiversity conservation outcomes, including KBAs as explicit targets at the site scale ) AZE develops to identify and conserve the “tip- of-the-iceberg” of KBAs 2) World Parks Congress: demand for KBAs for gap analysis ) RPD publishes CI Strategy Handbook laying out institutional KBA methodology 2) MacArthur fund multi-institutional KBA workshop 3) Eken et al. published ) Marine KBAs workshop 2) International launch of AZE, signed off by >50 organizations 3) KBA guidelines manual in review

The intergovernmental mandate for KBAs…

 CBD Global Strategy for Plant Conservation

The intergovernmental mandate for KBAs…  CBD Global Strategy for Plant Conservation  WPC Durban Accord, Action Plan and Recommendations

The intergovernmental mandate for KBAs…  CBD Global Strategy for Plant Conservation  WPC Durban Accord, Action Plan and Recommendations  CBD COP7 Decision and Programme of Work on Protected Areas

The intergovernmental mandate for KBAs…  CBD Global Strategy for Plant Conservation  WPC Durban Accord, Action Plan and Recommendations  CBD COP7 Decision and Programme of Work on Protected Areas  CBD SBSTTA 10 recommendation on 2010 indicators

Identifying KBAs within CI 2002 Initial workshop in Bogotá hosted by CI Andes CBC

Identifying KBAs within CI 2002 Initial workshop in Bogotá hosted by CI Andes CBC 2003 KBAs built into Eco- system Profiles for CEPF Cycle 4 hotspots

Identifying KBAs within CI 2002 Initial workshop in Bogotá hosted by CI Andes CBC KBAs built into Eco- system Profiles for CEPF Cycle 4 hotspots Refining KBAs in other CEPF hotspots and CBCs

Identifying KBAs within CI 2002 Initial workshop in Bogotá hosted by CI Andes CBC KBAs built into Eco- system Profiles for CEPF Cycle 4 hotspots Refining KBAs in other CEPF hotspots and CBCs KBA work begins in wilder- ness areas and marine

Identifying KBAs within CI 2002 Initial workshop in Bogotá hosted by CI Andes CBC KBAs built into Eco- system Profiles for CEPF Cycle 4 hotspots Refining KBAs in other CEPF hotspots and CBCs KBA work begins in wilder- ness areas and marine 1) Bensted- Smith document

Identifying KBAs within CI 2002 Initial workshop in Bogotá hosted by CI Andes CBC KBAs built into Eco- system Profiles for CEPF Cycle 4 hotspots Refining KBAs in other CEPF hotspots and CBCs KBA work begins in wilder- ness areas and marine 1) Bensted- Smith document 2) Annual Meeting discussion 2 May

Progress in KBA identification and refinement Green: Moore CBCs with KBA process underway; Yellow: hotspots where KBA refinement underway through CEPF; Purple: hotspots where KBA refinement near-completion through CEPF; Orange: KBA identification as part of CEPF Cycle 4; Blue: preliminary KBA discussions underway in marine regions; Pink: KBA identification not yet begun. Numbers denote CEPF cycle hotspots.