Tackling barriers to social justice in conservation

There are growing efforts to transform area-based conservation towards more equitable governance that recognises the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, their roles in decision making and their customary values and practices. Yet addressing past and ongoing injustices proves challenging and has been slow in practice.

This briefing outlines ten barriers discussed in academic and policy- and practice-related publications that are holding up the transformation of conservation towards greater social justice.

Reflexively and proactively engaging with these barriers is necessary to not only avoid reproducing harms, but to also unlock the social and ecological potential of the ambitious Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework targets.