New biodiversity targets were set by the 193 signatory nations of the Convention in Biological Diversity. A group of scientists have now developed a three-step plan to ensure the world meets these targets. The targets call for an increase in the size of protected areas, but the authors worry that the targets may be met in size increases without meeting overall strategic goals. The three points to solve this problem are establishing ecologically sensible protected areas, identifying clear, comparable performance metrics of ecological effectiveness, and reporting the contribution of other effective area-based conservation measures. These steps will ensure that the size increase of protected areas is not for the sake of goal setting, but for actually aiding in regenerating biodiversity. Original Science Daily Article (link) |