Biodiversity conservation, including the sustainable use of wild species, is embedded in a complex system of legal, economic, cultural, and livelihood dimensions. It relates directly to many multilateral processes, both those focused on the governance of living natural resources and those that impact or depend on them. As indicated above, however, commitments and actions on core issues such as sustainable use are not always aligned.
Further, multilateralism itself is under strain. Rising unilateralism, geopolitical fragmentation, and declining support for global agreements are reshaping the international system. Paradoxically, we propose that this creates a strategic opening: sustainable use can be reframed as a policy space central to key global concerns including food and water security, public health, trade, migration, human rights, and ecosystem resilience.
At the same time, growing protectionist activism within multilateral processes threatens internationally agreed approaches to sustainable use. This relates not only to matters of legality and safety regarding wildlife trade, but also to the very principle of sustainable use itself and its role in the way we live with nature.
At the 2025 IUCN World Conservation Congress, a coalition of protectionist members succeeded in getting support for a motion to review IUCN’s long-established Policy on the Sustainable Use of Wild Living Resources. They contended that new factors now needed to be considered:
AWARE ALSO that, over the last 25 years, a large number of complicated social, political, economic, ethical, legal, cultural, health-related, and technical factors, both direct and indirect, have surfaced and, with significant new science in the last 25 years, should influence decisions about how to assess the sustainability of use of wild species
With the commitment for sustainable use up against programmes which undermine support for sustainable use and with the retreat from multilateralism, we propose that the timing is right to establish a policy centre in Geneva for sustainable use.
| Sustainable use of wild species | Biodiversity-positive business | ||
| Area-based conservation | Financing for nature | ||
As a way of initially framing the policy space we propose a focus on 8 key GBF Targets of the GGB which can promote sustainable use as a means to biodiversity conservation and economic development, Targets 5 and 9 on the sustainable management, use, and trade of wild species connect directly to area‑based conservation (Targets 2 and 3), business engagement (Targets 10 and 15), and biodiversity finance (Targets 18 and 19).
Understanding how these targets interact – and how they align with multilateral processes on matters such as trade, employment, health, human rights, and migration – is a complex task. Earthmind can fill this gap as a Geneva-based policy centre providing strategic services that track, analyse, and support the implementation of sustainable use policies across multilateral, regional, and national arenas.