The Drive to Protect 30% of Earth’s Ocean, Lands, and Freshwater by 2030

Editor's note: This page was updated on September 15, 2022, to reflect progress in the policy negotiations and meeting schedule.

In December, the 196 parties of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will meet to finalize text for an ambitious new agreement to safeguard life on Earth by 2050. If all goes as expected, the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework will be adopted at the 15th Conference of the Parties to the CBD, which will be hosted in Montreal, Canada.

The framework seeks to achieve a vison of a “world living in harmony with nature,” and details four outcome-orientated goals with 23 action targets to be met by 2030. Each target is a key component of a comprehensive approach to conservation. Of note is Target 3, which calls for at least 30% of ocean, lands, and freshwater to be protected and conserved by 2030, a movement known as “30 by 30”—to date, more than 100 countries, global alliances, and coalitions publicly support this effort. In addition, 93 world leaders have announced support for achieving another ambitious set of global targets, the Leaders’ Pledge for Nature, which seeks to reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 for sustainable development.

However, no one organization or country can achieve these targets alone. Pew is working with many partners to build on this momentum for ambitious action to deliver 30 by 30, ensure that the international community engages with all stewards of the environment, and deliver protections to conserve biodiversity in the most important ocean, land, and freshwater ecosystems.