A landslide vote led to the passing of a Resolution entitled Importance for the conservation of nature of removing barriers to rights-based voluntary family planning. One of the most important results of the Resolution has been the establishment of the IUCN SSC CEESP Biodiversity & Family Planning Task Force, bridging the gaps between sectors and changing policy.
The IUCN SSC CEESP Biodiversity & Family Planning Task Force was set up as a result of the landslide vote at the 2020 World Conservation Congress passing Resolution 072 entitled Importance for the conservation of nature of removing barriers to rights-based voluntary family planning. The Task Force responds to a significant gap, not only within the IUCN, but within conservation policy and practice more broadly, to reflect the realities of the 21st century, particularly the inextricable links between human and environmental health. The Task Force responds to the growing awareness among conservationists that community health actions are increasingly critical for conservation actions to be successful. Indeed, there is a growing alliance of conservation organizations recognizing that genuine and substantive action to further human health and associated gender equality outcomes is part of conservation.
In its first year, the Task Force has already accumulated an impressive range of achievements. To maximize impact there are a number of working groups including one on Training & Education (developing tailored training modules to build the knowledge base of conservationists on the integration of sexual and reproductive health and rights and family planning in conservation), FP2030 Commitments (a group of conservation organizations have been supported to formalize work they are already undertaking to further health goals, with health partners, as part of their broader conservation work. This work embodies research, project implementation or policy commitments, and more organizations are planning to make such commitments), Conservation Classification Scheme (creating a dialogue and providing evidence on how removal of barriers to family planning should be included under this scheme in the future), Global Species Action Plan and Amphibian Conservation Action Plan (providing inputs to these key conservation policy documents aiming to include the removal of barriers to family planning as actions or targets for the first time). The Task Force has also been active and present at the key climate and conservation policy making forums: COP27 and COP15 respectively, hosting events on the importance of removing barriers to family planning within African climate policy process and the significance of removing barriers to family planning in conservation, respectively.
