Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs), and areas conserved by indigenous peoples play a vital role in conserving marine biodiversity whilst helping to address the linked crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. The Convention on Biological Diversity’s Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework calls for the conservation of at least 30 % of the earth’s lands, waters and seas by 2030. Establishing MPAs in a changing climate is a new technical report published by the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) Climate Change Specialist Group in collaboration with the International Partnership on MPAs, Biodiversity and Climate Change (IPMPABCC). It offers guidance on how to integrate climate change considerations into MPA planning, designation, and policies to ensure that marine ecosystems are safeguarded for now and the future. Whilst the guidance focusses on new and expanded MPAs and networks, it is also relevant to the climate-adaptive management of existing MPAs. It also introduces tools and approaches that can be used to implement climate-adaptive MPAs.
The guidance describes four principles that provide a solid foundation for creating climate informed MPAs. These principles are:
- Understand change,
- Strengthen adaptation and resilience,
- Ensure equity and inclusivity, and
- Generate holistic co-benefits.
Further detail on the principles can be found in the technical report.
The guidance also includes case studies that illustrate how the principles are being used to inform real-world examples of MPA establishment and expansion. These case studies are:
- Taking a proactive approach to conserving fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean – understanding change.
- Establishing a climate-resilient conservation area in the biodiverse transboundary region of Kenya and Tanzania – strengthening adaptation and resilience; ensuring equity and inclusivity.
- Central Eastern Marine Park, Australia – designing for climate change – strengthen adaptation and resilience.
- Promoting resilience at Ay Rhun Island MPA through climate change principles in traditional management practices – strengthening adaptation and resilience.
- ensuring equity and inclusivity Building an Indigenous-focused and climate-adaptive Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary – ensuring equity and inclusivity.
- Establishing the first Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMA) in the English waters to enhance protections in the face of a changing climate – strengthening adaptation and resilience; generate holistic co-benefits.
You can download and read the Establishing MPAs in a Changing Climate IUCN Technical Report here.
To publicise the technical report representatives from the IPMPABCC and IUCN’s WCPA Climate Change Specialist Group have attended and led a number of events since June 2025.
The first event was the UN Ocean Conference (UNOC). The third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC) took place in Nice, France in June 2025. UNOC bought together all UN member states to work together for sustainable ocean management. It also was seeking to implement a Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG14) to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development and produce an ambitious Nice Ocean Action Plan.
Representatives of the International Partnership, MPAs, Biodiversity and Climate Change and the IUCN WCPA Climate Change Specialist Group hosted an event to promote the newly published technical report Establishing MPAs in a Changing Climate and to showcase the Partnership’s work to date. Case studies were also presented which demonstrated the real-world application of the four principles set out in the report including in Ay and Rhun Island MPA (Indonesia), transboundary examples from Kenya and Tanzania and Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) in the UK. The panel also highlighted their priorities for marine conservation to 2030.
Representatives of IPMPABCC and IUCN’s WCPA Climate Change Specialist Group attended the International Conference on Marine Protected Areas in Marine Spatial Planning (MPA-MSP) which took place in Bodø, Norway in July 2025. The conference covered the latest updates and scientific advances in marine biodiversity conservation. The topics covered included MPA planning, climate change effects on marine biodiversity, blue carbon science, and spatial planning benefits.
To promote the publication of the Establishing MPAs in a changing climate technical report a poster was created to be presented at the conference. The poster is found here.
The focus of the poster is the four core principles from the technical report and also provides some background as to why the technical report guidance document was created and is needed.
On July 17th 2025, the Establishing MPAs in a Changing Climate technical report was presented at a Vital Sites Webinar by members of the International Partnership on MPAs, Biodiversity and Climate Change and the IUCN WCPA Climate Change Specialist Group. The four key principles from the report of understand change, strengthen adaptation and resilience, ensure equity and inclusivity and generate holistic co-benefits were introduced. The session also featured some of the case studies that are included in the report including from Indonesia, the Kenya/Tanzania border and the United Kingdom. These case studies demonstrated how protected and conserved areas can be designed to deliver ecological and social outcomes whilst also building resilience to the impacts of climate change. The webinar recording can be found here.
You can download and read the Establishing MPAs in a Changing Climate report here. https://youtu.be/ZNUeIEAtJbY?si=zMcdEndn92KGCeap
What next?
The IPMPABCC have organised their very first Virtual Science Symposium on 30th September 2025 where we will work with members of MPA Country Agencies from around the world to identify common evidence gaps and follow on work from the Establishing MPAs in a Changing Climate Technical Report. This event will help us to design our work plan for the next two to three years. We are also continuing to collect and share additional case studies which demonstrate the application of one or more of the four principles highlighted in the report.
For more information on the IPMPABCC, the first IPMPABCC Virtual Science Symposium or to submit a potential case study please contact us here.