This report was first published before the final decision on the Global Biodiversity Framework was made at the CBD meeting in December 2022. Some important issues relating to implementation of Target 3 are still being discussed; the text remains ambiguous in places and it will take several months to interpret and agree ways forward. However, the practical guidance outlined below has not been affected by revisions at the CBD Conference of Parties. We have therefore not revised the main text of the following report, which still refers for example to “draft target 3” and quotes language in the draft target.

This document identifies the most effective options for delivery of a target of achieving 30% of land, inland water and ocean in protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures by 2030 (‘30x30’), as set out in Target 3 of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) from the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The target, agreed in December 2022, is as follows: “Ensure and enable that by 2030 at least 30 per cent of terrestrial, inland water, and of coastal and marine areas, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, are effectively conserved and managed through ecologically representative, well-connected and equitably governed systems of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures, recognizing indigenous and traditional territories, where applicable, and integrated into wider landscapes, seascapes and the ocean, while ensuring that any sustainable use, where appropriate in such areas, is fully consistent with conservation outcomes, recognizing and respecting the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities, including over their traditional territories.”