This week, the Wildlife Justice Commission joined with thousands of people from around the world to shape the future of conservation, as a participant in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress (WCC), held from 9 to 15 October in Abu Dhabi. The WCC, which takes place every four years, brought together nearly 10,000 participants from governments, civil society, Indigenous Peoples, academia, and business to coordinate action on conservation and sustainable development.
As a new member of IUCN, Wildlife Justice pressed for Crimes that Affect the Environment (CAE) – including wildlife trafficking – to receive the global attention and forceful response they urgently deserve as major drivers of biodiversity loss.
Wildlife Justice joined others in the call for CAE to be recognised as a serious threat to nature, people, and the planet, and for the inclusion of CAE in the Abu Dhabi Call to Action. This document urges the global community, with the leadership and support of IUCN, to implement transformative and collaborative solutions that address the needs of nature, our planet, and its people.
IUCN members approved a strategic vision for nature conservation for the next 20 years and a four-year Programme for IUCN (2026-2029), committing the Union to support action to prevent and reduce CAE. Essential steps include building collaboration through global networks such as United for Wildlife and the Nature Crime Alliance (Wildlife Justice is a member of both); mobilising stronger political will by working more closely with UNODC, INTERPOL, the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC), the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC),and theUN Environment Programme (UNEP); and strengthening legal and policy frameworks at the national and international levels.
“The world is shifting beneath our feet with startling speed. Biodiversity loss has not been halted, and is converging with climate change, pollution, and inequality in ways never experienced before,” said H.E. IUCN President Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak. “And yet, I am filled with optimism, because I believe that IUCN has the capacity, the knowledge, and the collective will to rise to these complex challenges.”
Connecting conservation and crime
Wildlife Justice strongly supported the adoption of Resolution 48/52: Crimes that Affect the Environment, which recognises CAE (including wildlife trafficking, illegal deforestation and logging, and illegal fishing) as a major threat to the environment, biodiversity, climate, and human rights. The resolution calls for stronger global cooperation to tackle these crimes, acknowledging their links to other forms of organised crime and corruption.
The resolution requests the IUCN Director General and Council to convene a Task Force to develop an IUCN Strategy on CAE, and to actively engage with key international organisations and fora – including UNODC, UNTOC and its open-ended intergovernmental expert group on CAE, UNCAC, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), and the UN General Assembly (UNGA) – to strengthen global action. It also calls for IUCN’s engagement in the 15th UN Crime Congress in Abu Dhabi next year.
Building on this momentum, Wildlife Justice co-organised the session “From the World Conservation Congress to the World Crime Congress: A Roadmap on Crimes that Affect the Environment” at the French Pavilion. This high-level discussion explored how to bridge the conservation and criminal justice communities to tackle CAE more effectively. The session was co-organised by Wildlife Justice with France, Peru, UNODC, the International Council of Environmental Law, Wildlife Conservation Society, World Resources Institute, National Whistleblower Center, the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, and the Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime.
Wildlife Justice believes a holistic and coordinated approach is essential to closing gaps in the international legal framework and ensuring that CAE are addressed with the same coordination, seriousness, and resources as other organised crime. As an organisation working at the nexus of crime and conservation, Wildlife Justice is particularly pleased to see IUCN breaking down silos between these worlds and recognising that tackling CAE is central to protecting biodiversity, strengthening governance, and achieving global climate and sustainability goals
Supporting broader conservation action
Wildlife Justice supported several other key resolutions adopted during the Congress, including those addressing wildlife trafficking and the management of seized or confiscated live wild animals; combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing; addressing the overexploitation of wild species; mobilising the role of wild animals in ecosystems as a climate solution; strengthening safe civic spaces; and advancing citizen science. Together, these outcomes reinforce global efforts to combat CAE and promote sustainable and inclusive conservation action.
IUCN, given its unique position and broad, diverse membership, has a vital role to play in driving a globally coordinated response to the pressing threats of CAE. Wildlife Justice looks forward to collaborating with all partners to ensure these important decisions lead to concrete progress.
