Ipieca insights from the IUCN World Conservation Congress

The Congress addressed five interlinked themes:

• Scaling up resilient conservation action
• Reducing climate overshoot risks
• Delivering on equity
• Transitioning to nature-positive economies and societies
• Disruptive innovation and leadership for conservation

Key insights from the Congress

Energy transition with positive impacts on nature

• The importance of integrated land-use planning as a key enabler for aligning renewable energy development with biodiversity conservation was highlighted. Case studies from the solar, wind, and hydropower sectors demonstrated how co-use of infrastructure and conservation areas can optimise land use, reduce conflicts, and deliver biodiversity gains. See the Ipieca-IUCN Co-use opportunities in wind and solar energy projects for guidance and advice
• Renewable energy pathways should restore ecosystems, reduce biodiversity loss, and avoid harm to sensitive habitats—while phasing out fossil fuels responsibly

Just energy transition

• Supporting nature conservation by shifting to clean energy that does not create new environmental and social harm, ensuring that communities are included in decisions and mitigating climate change impacts
• Calling for the full participation of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, NGOs and civil society

Collaboration and capacity building

• A recurring theme was the importance of matching local nature contributions to regional, national and global frameworks, including the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans. Collaboration is at the heart of the alignment to ensure corporate biodiversity actions are not only locally relevant, but also globally impactful
• Strengthening partnerships across sectors and regions, and investing in local capacity, knowledge exchange, and institutional support to scale up effective conservation and climate action and social equity

Outcomes from the Congress

New quadrennial IUCN Programme 2026-2029. The four-year programme follows two major imperatives: to scale up inclusive and socially just conservation in land, freshwater and ocean and to assist this scaling-up by directly supporting transformations within eight key sectors that currently have a major negative impact on biodiversity.

1. Food and agriculture
2. Forestry
3. Water
4. Infrastructure
5. Extractives
6. Wildlife trade
7. Finance
8. Climate mitigation and adaptation

New 20-year strategic vision for IUCN, ‘Unite for Nature on the Path to 2045’, setting an agenda for global conservation to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and ensure any use of natural resources is both equitable and ecologically sustainable.

The Abu Dhabi Call to Action advocating for urgent global action in five priority areas:

• Put nature first: protect and restore biodiversity and as vital to human well-being, while supporting and empowering local communities
• Work together globally: strengthen international cooperation and align policies to integrate nature across all sectors
• Promote fairness and inclusion: ensure equal rights and participation for women, youth, Indigenous Peoples and environmental defenders
• Drive evidence-based solutions: combine science and Indigenous knowledge, and invest in research, education and technology
• Mobilise resources: increase and align funding, skills and tools to build nature-positive economies and resilient communities

150 motions adopted by the IUCN Members’ Assembly (its decision-making body responsible to set policies and priorities) on diverse areas including biodiversity, climate, health, ecocide and plastic pollution.

The following motions are relevant to the oil and gas industry:

• Motion 006: Regional or subnational protected areas for 30% by 2030. Promoting the model of regional or sub-national protected natural areas to achieve the global target of 30% protected and conserved areas by 2030
• Motion 038: Driving synergy for a net zero, nature positive and just energy transition highlighting the need to transition away from fossil fuels
• Motion 042: Addressing the climate and biodiversity crises through fossil fuel supply-side measures and a just transition mentioning transition away fossil fuels
• Motion 085: Amplifying the role of the private sector in achieving a nature positive world, including public-private partnerships, nature-related disclosures, and adherence to the mitigation hierarchy
• Motion 073: Defining a robust Nature Positive for Business framework, to mobilise corporate, civil society and government support for high-integrity nature positive contributions aligned with the GBF
• Motion 094: Recognising the importance of Indigenous languages, traditional knowledge and cultural heritage in biodiversity conservation

Full list of motions.

Launch of the Rapid High Integrity Nature Positive Outcomes (RHINO) framework to help governments, businesses, and civil society rapidly identify, act on and measure nature-positive interventions aligned with global biodiversity and sustainability goals.

Second edition of the Nature-based solutions global standard: strengthening scientific rigor and practical guidance to ensure nature-based actions effectively address climate, biodiversity and development challenges.

Ipieca events and activities at the Congress

Launch of the Ipieca-IUCN Co-use opportunities in wind and solar energy projects guidance. Ipieca Vice Chair Karen Westley (Shell) and Ipieca Deputy CEO Sophie Depraz took part in two panels on promoting co-benefit actions for positive environmental and social impacts from wind and solar projects, launching the joint guidance.

Ipieca and IUCN hosted a workshop to refine the marine NPI principles for the energy sector. The session brought together over 30 practitioners and stakeholders, reflecting a growing industry interest to achieve positive biodiversity outcomes in the marine environment, which is particularly complex.

The Ipieca-IUCN biodiversity peer-to-peer workshop enabled the exchange of real-world case studies and lessons learned to mainstream biodiversity in operations and management systems, supporting capacity building across the sector.

The Congress provided a platform to update the Ipieca-IUCN memorandum of understanding, reaffirming a shared vision to navigate the energy transition in a holistic way that cares for nature and leaves no one behind.

Ipieca also hosted and participated in various leadership roundtable events, aiming to build partnership and accelerate knowledge transfer in emerging markets and the alternative energy sector.

The Ipieca leaders’ roundtable, offered a platform for senior executives and SMEs from Ipieca members and stakeholders to shape a shared vision for Ipieca BES leadership. We were honoured to welcome Adnan Aqeel Madhi, (VP, Group Environment OH and Social Risk, ADNOC) and Joe Walston (Executive VP, Global Conservation Programme, Wildlife Conservation Society) to set the scene, providing insights on the climate and nature initiatives, before a knowledge sharing session which convened nature leaders and executives from Ipieca member companies (ADNOC, PETRONAS, Shell and TotalEnergies) and the following stakeholders:

• Rachel Asante-Owusu, Senior Programme Coordinator, IUCN’s Global Climate Change and Energy Transition
• Alex Ross, Senior Programme Officer, Nature Economy, United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP WCMC)
• Libby Sandbrook, Director or Business and Nature, Fauna & Flora
• Pippa Howard, Chief Nature Strategist, Nature metrics
• Dr Adeline Serckx, Strategic Director, The Biodiversity Consultancy
• Manuel Widmann, Fund Manager, EBRD

Ipieca also facilitated the PETRONAS roundtable on the energy-nature nexus in the energy transition looking at key priorities for the energy transition to embed nature and biodiversity.