World Database on Protected Areas

The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) is a joint project between the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It is compiled and managed by the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), in collaboration with governments, non-governmental organisations, academia and industry. The WDPA is the most comprehensive global database of marine and terrestrial protected areas, comprising both spatial data (i.e. boundaries and points) with associated attribute data (i.e. tabular information). It is made available online through Protected Planet (www.protectedplanet.net) where the data is both viewable and downloadable.

Sites included in the WDPA

In 2010, the countries of the world agreed on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Strategic Plan 2010-2020 to halt biodiversity loss and ensure the sustainable use of natural resources (CBD 2010). The plan includes 20 Aichi Biodiversity Targets to be met by 2020 and acknowledges the central role of protected areas in meeting biodiversity conservation goals. Target 11 sets out a series of equally important and necessary elements that a global protected area network should deliver: By 2020, at least 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem services, are conserved through effectively and equitably managed, ecologically representative and well-connected systems of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures, and integrated into the wider landscape and seascape (CBD, 2010).