Paris, France · 6 May 2019 — The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) released the most comprehensive assessment of the state of nature ever completed, concluding that approximately one million animal and plant species now face extinction — many within decades — unless the drivers of biodiversity loss are urgently addressed.
The Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services was approved by representatives of 132 IPBES member governments at the platform's seventh plenary session in Paris. Compiled by 145 expert authors from 50 countries over three years, the assessment drew on a systematic review of approximately 15,000 scientific and government sources, with additional input from indigenous and local knowledge systems.
The Scale of Decline
The report paints a picture of accelerating ecological decline across every region of the planet. Among its most striking findings:
The assessment estimates that roughly 8 million animal and plant species exist on Earth (of which around 5.5 million are insects). Of these, approximately 1 million are threatened with extinction, many within decades. The threat is not evenly distributed across taxonomic groups:
| Group | Threatened (%) |
|---|---|
| Amphibians | More than 40% |
| Reef-forming corals | Nearly 33% |
| Marine mammals | More than 33% |
| Insects (tentative estimate) | Approximately 10% |
The report notes that the current rate of species extinction is already tens to hundreds of times higher than the average over the past 10 million years and is accelerating.
Five Direct Drivers of Decline
The assessment identifies five direct drivers of biodiversity loss, ranked by their relative impact from largest to smallest:
- Changes in land and sea use: The conversion of forests, wetlands, and grasslands to agricultural and urban land is the single largest driver. Since 1970, urban areas have more than doubled, and more than 85% of wetlands present in 1700 had been lost by 2000.
- Direct exploitation of organisms: Overfishing, hunting, and wildlife trade have depleted populations across marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Thirty-three percent of marine fish stocks were being harvested at unsustainable levels in 2015.
- Climate change: Warming, altered precipitation, and extreme weather are already impacting species ranges, migration patterns, and ecosystem functioning. Climate change is projected to become one of the top drivers of biodiversity loss by 2050.
- Pollution: Plastic, nutrient runoff, and chemical contaminants have spread to every corner of the planet. Marine plastic pollution has increased tenfold since 1980, affecting at least 267 species.
- Invasive alien species: The number of invasive alien species per country has risen by 70% since 1970, outcompeting native species and disrupting ecosystem processes.
Ecosystem Services at Risk
The assessment evaluates 18 categories of nature's contributions to people — the ecosystem services upon which human well-being depends. Of these, 14 have declined since 1970, including:
- Pollination: Wild pollinator populations have declined in distribution and abundance, threatening crop production worth $235–577 billion annually.
- Soil fertility: Land degradation has reduced productivity in 23% of the global terrestrial area.
- Carbon sequestration: Living biomass and soils hold significant carbon stocks, but deforestation and degradation are converting ecosystems from carbon sinks to sources.
- Coastal protection: Coral reefs and mangroves that buffer coastlines from storms have been severely degraded.
The Call for Transformative Change
IPBES Chair Sir Robert Watson delivered the report's central message at the Paris plenary: "The overwhelming evidence of the IPBES Global Assessment, from a wide range of different fields of knowledge, presents an ominous picture. The health of ecosystems on which we and all other species depend is deteriorating more rapidly than ever. We are eroding the very foundations of our economies, livelihoods, food security, health and quality of life worldwide."
The report argues that the situation can be reversed, but only through what it terms "transformative change" — a fundamental, system-wide reorganisation across technological, economic, and social factors, including paradigms, goals, and values. This includes:
- Integrating biodiversity considerations into all sectors of economic decision-making
- Reforming agricultural subsidies that drive land conversion
- Expanding and effectively managing protected areas
- Recognising indigenous and local knowledge in conservation governance
- Reducing food waste and shifting consumption patterns
Implications for African Biodiversity
Africa holds some of the world's most biodiverse ecosystems, including the Congo Basin — the second-largest tropical rainforest on Earth — and the Eastern Afromontane biodiversity hotspot. The report highlights several Africa-specific findings:
- The Congo Basin faces increasing pressure from agricultural expansion, logging, and mining, with forest loss accelerating in recent years.
- African large mammal populations have declined significantly, with poaching and habitat fragmentation as primary drivers.
- Coastal ecosystems along the West African seaboard are degraded by pollution, overfishing, and mangrove clearance.
- Indigenous and community-conserved areas in Africa demonstrate higher biodiversity outcomes than state-managed protected areas in several contexts, undersnating the importance of community-led conservation.
A Decade of Decision
The Global Assessment was timed to inform the post-2020 biodiversity framework — the successor to the Aichi Biodiversity Targets — which was to be negotiated at the Convention on Biological Diversity's COP15. Its findings underscored the inadequacy of existing conservation targets and the need for binding, measurable commitments backed by implementation mechanisms.
The report's 1,800-page full version, published later in 2019, provides the detailed evidence base for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers. Its Summary for Policymakers, approved line-by-line by governments in Paris, represents the negotiated distillation of the scientific findings.
Sources
- IPBES, Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, 6 May 2019
- IPBES Summary for Policymakers of the Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, approved at the seventh session of the IPBES Plenary, Paris, 29 April–4 May 2019
- United Nations, "UN Report: Nature's Dangerous Decline 'Unprecedented'; Species Extinction Rates 'Accelerating'", 6 May 2019
- Convention on Biological Diversity, Aichi Biodiversity Targets, 2010
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Institutional Research Desk · Foresight Institute of Research and Translation
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