Global Civil Society & the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Goal 15: Sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation, halt biodiversity loss

Life on Land


Goal 15 is about conserving life on land. It is to protect and restore terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and stop biodiversity loss.

Earth’s ecosystems are vital for sustaining human life, they contribute to over half of global GDP and encompass diverse cultural, spiritual, and economic values.

However, the world is facing a triple crisis of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss.

Between 2015 and 2019, at least 100 million hectares of healthy and productive land were degraded every year, impacting the lives of 1.3 billion people.

Agricultural expansion is the direct driver of almost 90 per cent of deforestation. This is in direct relation to our food systems, and oil palm harvesting accounted for 7 per cent of global deforestation from 2000 to 2018.

Global and regional efforts to sustain forest ecosystems as well as their social, economic and environmental functions are essential, in particular for developing countries and the tropics.

We need to shift humanity’s relationship with nature to achieve Goal 15, and realise that nature is the root of our life of earth. The recently adopted Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework provides renewed impetus for Goal 15, outlining four outcome- oriented goals to be achieved by 2050 and 23 targets to be achieved by 2030.

Name Acronym Founded City HQ Country/Territory HQ Type I Type II

Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals

Bonn Convention 1979 Bonn Germany T g

Convention on the Conservation of the Living Resources of the Southeast Atlantic

1969 Rome Italy T g

Convention on the International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects

1972 T g

Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution from Land-based Sources

Paris Convention 1974 T g

Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques

ENMOD Convention 1976 T g

Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological - Biological - and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction

1972 T g

Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction

CWC 1992 The Hague Netherlands T g

Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-personnel Mines and on Their Destruction

Ottawa Convention 1997 T g

Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions

2005 Paris France T g

Convention on the Protection of the Environment between Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden

1974 T g

Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area

Helsinki Convention, 1974 1974 Helsinki Finland T g

Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area, 1992

Helsinki Convention, 1992 1992 Helsinki Finland T g

Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area, 1999

Helsinki Convention, 1999 1999 Helsinki Finland T g

Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat

Convention on Wetlands 1971 Paris France T g

Convention Relative to the Preservation of Fauna and Flora in Their Natural State

1933 T g

Convention Respecting Measures for the Preservation and Protection Fur Seals in the North Pacific Ocean

1911 T g

Convention to Ban the Importation into Forum Island Countries of Hazardous Wastes and Radioactive Wastes and to Control the Transboundary Movement and Management of Hazardous Wastes within the South Pacific

Waigani convention 1995 T g

Cool Farm Alliance

CFA Grantham UK J

Cooperazione Internazionale

COOPI 1965 Milan Italy G

Coordinadora de las Organizaciones Indígenas de la Cuenca Amazónica

COICA 1984 Quito Ecuador F

Coral Guardian

2012 Lyon France G

Coral Restoration Foundation

CRF Key Largo FL USA G f

Council for a Livable World

CLW 1962 Washington DC USA G

Council of Arab Ministers Responsible for the Environment

CAMRE Cairo Egypt E g

Council of European BioRegions

CEBR Brussels Belgium D

Council of European Foresters

CEF 2011 Bucharest Romania D

Council of European Geodetic Surveyors

1972 Brussels Belgium E

Council of Regional Organisations of the Pacific

CROP 1988 Suva Fiji E gy

Council on Forest Engineering

COFE Morgantown WV USA G

Cousteau Society

1973 Etna NH USA G f

Crime Stoppers International

CSI 1976 Amersfoort Netherlands F

Critical Costume

2013 F

Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund

CEPF 2000 Arlington VA USA E f

Cruelty Free International

1898 London UK G

Cultural Survival

1972 Cambridge MA USA G

Dacia Revival International Society

Long Island NY USA G

Danish Centre for Gender, Equality and Diversity

Copenhagen Denmark G

Danish International Investment Funds

Copenhagen Denmark G fg

Darwin Initiative

1992 London UK G

David and Lucile Packard Foundation

1964 Los Altos CA USA G f

David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation

Guildford UK G f

Deep Sea Conservation Coalition

DSCC 2004 Amsterdam Netherlands F y

Defend International

DI 2007 Kolbotn Norway F

Defensores do Planeta

1999 Rio de Janeiro Brazil G

Desert Locust Control Organization for Eastern Africa

DLCO-EA 1962 Addis Ababa Ethiopia D g

DESERTEC Foundation

2009 Hamburg Germany G f

Development Alternatives

1983 Delhi India G

Development Innovations and Networks

1980 Geneva Switzerland F y

Development Workshop Austria

1986 Hallein Austria G

Dhaka Ahsania Mission

DAM 1958 Dhaka Bangladesh G

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