UNESCO’s latest report underscores the extraordinary role of its designated sites in protecting both people and nature. While global wildlife populations have declined by 73% since 1970, those within UNESCO‑protected areas have remained comparatively stable, demonstrating their effectiveness in safeguarding biodiversity. The report, People and Nature in UNESCO‑Designated Sites: Global and Local Contributions, is the first to examine World Heritage Sites, Biosphere Reserves, and Global Geoparks as a single global network of over 2,260 sites covering more than 13 million km².
These sites encompass more than 60% of globally mapped species, with 40% found nowhere else. They also store an estimated 240 gigatons of carbon—equivalent to nearly two decades of current global emissions—and their forests absorb about 15% of the carbon captured by forests worldwide each year. Despite this immense value, nearly 90% of sites face high environmental stress, with climate hazards rising by 40% in the past decade. Without stronger action, many could reach critical tipping points by 2050, risking irreversible impacts such as glacier loss, coral reef collapse, and forests shifting from carbon sinks to carbon sources.
The report highlights the deep connection between nature and communities in these landscapes. UNESCO sites are home to nearly 900 million people—around 10% of the global population—and represent over 1,000 languages. A quarter of sites overlap with Indigenous Peoples’ territories, rising to nearly half in Africa, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Economically, these areas and their surroundings generate about 10% of global GDP, showing their importance not only for conservation but also for livelihoods and cultural heritage.
Action taken today can still make a measurable difference. Avoiding each additional degree of warming could halve the number of UNESCO sites exposed to major disruption by the end of the century. Yet while 80% of national biodiversity plans include UNESCO sites, only 5% of national climate plans do. The report calls for scaling up action through ecosystem restoration, stronger transboundary cooperation, integrating sites into climate strategies, and inclusive governance with Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
UNESCO sites demonstrate that people and nature can thrive together. From stable wildlife populations to conservation successes like the recovery of mountain gorillas in conflict‑affected regions, they show what is possible when protection is sustained. The report, produced with contributions from over 20 leading research institutions, urges greater investment in these sites as strategic assets for tackling climate change, biodiversity loss, and safeguarding cultures and livelihoods for generations to come.
