Official IUCN publications

Many shark populations are in serious decline worldwide with little shark fisheries management in place. The IUCN Shark Specialist Group has compiled a Global Status Report for Chondrichthyan Fishes (the Sharks, Rays and Chimaeras), with Red List assessments for over 100 species and regional reports on the status of shark fisheries, together with information on taxonomy; life history; trade; socio-economics; threats; and conservation and management initiatives.

The flora of the Mediterranean islands includes many rare and localised species unique to the islands. Some of these are particularly threatened with extinction due to various pressures caused by people and their activities in Mediterranean ecosystems. It includes 50 descriptive sheets of species which are especially threatened, based on the IUCN Red List criteria.

Human wellbeing depends on the capacity of the earth’s natural systems to provide ecosystem goods and services. However, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment chillingly concludes that unless we take action to mitigate the current decline in ecosystem services, the cost to society will be substantial. In this publication, IUCN defines three key challenges that will need to be addressed in the near future in order to deliver internationally-agreed development goals.

Human wellbeing depends on the capacity of the earth’s natural systems to provide ecosystem goods and services. However, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment chillingly concludes that unless we take action to mitigate the current decline in ecosystem services, the cost to society will be substantial. In this publication, IUCN defines three key challenges that will need to be addressed in the near future in order to deliver internationally-agreed development goals.

During a forum held at the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress in South Africa in 2003, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the IUCN SSC Veterinary and Southern Africa Sustainable Use Specialist Groups (VSG and SASUSG) brought together nearly 80 experts from Africa and beyond to develop ways to tackle the immense health-related conservation and development challenges at the wildlife/domestic animal/human interface facing East and Southern Africa today, and tomorrow.

The entry into force of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture marks the commitment of the world community to a freestanding convention directed at addressing both global needs for food security and internationally agreed objectives regarding the concepts of "access and benefit-sharing" found in the Convention on Biological Diversity.