IISD at IUCN World Conservation Congress

The forthcoming International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress (WCC) will take place in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), from October 9 to 15, 2025. Held every 4 years since 1948, the Congress brings together world leaders and decision-makers from government, civil society, Indigenous communities, business, and academia to advance solutions that protect and restore the environment, as well as harness the power of nature to address global challenges. 

This year’s Congress comes at a pivotal moment: only 5 years remain to achieve the 2030 targets of the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals. With urgency and ambition, WCC 2025 will focus on accelerating action and scaling up collaboration to ensure that sustainability efforts are effective, equitable, and just. Discussions will centre on five priority themes:

• scaling up resilient conservation action
• reducing climate overshoot risks
• delivering on equity
• transitioning to nature-positive economies and societies
• disruptive innovation and leadership for conservation 

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) will contribute to these conversations by sharing expertise and insights from its work to halt biodiversity loss, strengthen environmental protection, and scale up nature-based solutions (NbS) where they are most urgently needed. Our experts will participate in events and discussions, highlighting activities and achievements of IISD’s NbS projects, particularly the Scaling Nature-based Solutions for Climate Adaptation in Sub-Saharan Africa (SUNCASA) and Climate Adaptation and Protected Areas (CAPA) initiatives. 

Both projects will be featured during the session “From cities to parks: Nature-based solutions for climate resilience,” which will present preliminary findings from the integrated cost-benefit analysis conducted by the Nature-Based Infrastructure Global Resource Centre in SUNCASA cities: Dire Dawa, Ethiopia; Kigali, Rwanda; and Johannesburg, South Africa. In addition, the CAPA Initiative will launch a new infographic on conflict-sensitive NbS for climate adaptation.  

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See below for the full list of IISD’s participating events at the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025.

Follow IISD Earth Negotiations Bulletin coverage of the Congress.

Building the Future: Approaches to Nature-Positive Infrastructure Development

Date: Friday, October 10, 2025

Time: 4–5:30 p.m. (GMT +4)

Location: Virtual Channel 1

Mainstreaming biodiversity is key to ensuring a prosperous future for people and the planet. But is it feasible? This virtual session will explore challenges, share insights, and discuss opportunities to integrate nature into infrastructure development.

Speakers

• Rodney van der Ree, WSP Australia and The University of Melbourne
• Anna Ackermann,  International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD)
• Marina Kosmus, Competence Centre Biodiversity, Forests and Agriculture, GIZ
• Savina Carluccio, International Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure
• Johan Robinson, GEF Biodiversity and Land Degradation Unit, UNEP
• Umang Bhattarai, Asian Development Bank
• Evan Freund, WWF
   

From cities to parks: Nature-based Solutions for climate resilience

Date: Saturday, October 11, 2025

Time: 2–3:30 p.m. (GMT +4)

Location: Canada Pavilion

This 90-minute session, co-organized by IISD and Parks Canada, will highlight challenges, achievements, and lessons learned from implementing the SUNCASA and CAPA projects in protected and urban areas across sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, and Oceania. 

The session will feature presentations from local implementing partners in Belize, Rwanda and Zambia, offering insights into on-the-ground experiences. Attendees will also participate in an interactive world café activity, rotating through three stations to discuss the following:

• promising practices and opportunities for scaling up NbS in urban and protected area contexts
• key barriers and challenges to implementation
• strategies for integrating gender-responsive and socially inclusive considerations

The session will conclude with a plenary discussion, where participants will share key takeaways and reflections from the conversations, fostering actionable insights for advancing NbS globally.

Speakers

• Alec Crawford – Director of Nature for Resilience, IISD
• Michail Kapetanakis – Policy Advisor, Sustainable Infrastructure, IISD
• Susan Sekirime – Senior Policy Advisor, CAPA Africa Lead, IISD
• Philbert Tuyisabe – Conservation Programme Manager, ARCOS Network, Rwanda
• Nalucha Nganga – Country Director, WWF Zambia

Environmental Change and Migration

Date: Thursday, October 9, 2025

Time: 3–3:45 p.m. (GMT +4)

Location:  IUCN Commissions Knowledge Hub

Migration of people and species shapes the future of conservation. By understanding movement patterns driven by environmental change and conflict, we can better anticipate pressures on ecosystems. This session will look at strategies for addressing the intersections of climate change, migration, and conservation, including innovative policies and cross-sector collaboration. Participants will leave the event equipped to adapt conservation planning and management to dynamic, complex migration challenges.

Conflict-sensitive conservation in practice: Learning from peers

Date: Friday, October 10, 2025

Time: 2–2:40 p.m. (GMT +4)

Location: Conference Hall B: Session Room 8

Many biodiversity hotspots are located in regions affected by conflict, instability, or weak governance, making conservation goals harder to achieve. This session will showcase lessons from conservation practitioners on conflict-sensitive conservation and introduce a new free, online conflict-sensitive conservation course, hosted by the IUCN Academy.

The session is a collaborative effort between IISD, PeaceNexus Foundation, Africa Wildlife Foundation, Conservation International, Environmental Peacebuilding Association/Environmental Law Institute, Global Youth Biodiversity Network, IUCN (CEESP and Academy), and WWF. 

Discussions will explore these topics:

• integrating conflict sensitivity and rights-based approaches
• ensuring inclusivity and a gender-responsive approach
• particular challenges and opportunities for young conservation activists
• monitoring, evaluation, and learning in conflict-sensitive conservation

How can we empower community ownership of ecosystem-based adaptation at scale?

Date: Monday, October 13, 2025

Time: 2–3 p.m. (GMT +4)

Location: IUCN Programme 2026-2029 Pavilion - R2

This interactive session will explore how community-led ecosystem-based adaptation can drive scalable, inclusive climate resilience. Drawing on lessons from the CBAScale+ project in southern Africa, participants will learn about participatory processes, gender-responsive approaches, and policy integration in community-based adaptation. Voices from government, technical teams, and development partners will share insights on responding to climate risks through participatory approaches, fostering both resilient communities and ecosystems.