Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Comment
  • Published:

Bold nature retention targets are essential for the global environment agenda

Nature Ecology & Evolution volume 2, pages 1194–1195 (2018)Cite this article

Subjects

Ambitious targets for the retention — not just formal protection — of nature are urgently needed to conserve biodiversity and to maintain crucial ecosystem services for humanity.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Relevant articles

Open Access articles citing this article.

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: A headline global retention target emerges from an example set of specific sub-targets.

References

  1. Gannon, P. et al. Parks 23.2, 13–26 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Halpern, B. S. et al. Nat. Commun. 6, 7615 (2015).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Venter, O. et al. Nat. Commun. 7, 12558 (2016).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Maron, M., Rhodes, J. R. & Gibbons, P. Conserv. Lett. 6, 359–367 (2013).

    Google Scholar 

  5. Pressey, R. L., Visconti, P. & Ferraro, P. J. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 370, 20140280 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Büscher, B. et al. Oryx 51, 407–410 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Dinerstein, E. et al. Bioscience 67, 534–545 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Watson, J. E. M. et al. Conserv. Biol. 30, 243–248 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Wilson, E. O. Half-Earth: Our Planet’s Fight for Life (Liveright, New York, 2016).

  10. Ricketts, T. H. et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 102, 18497–18501 (2005).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Scheffers, B. R. et al. Science 354, aaf7671 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Ceballos, G., Ehrlich, P. R. & Dirzo, R. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 114, E6089–E6096 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Watson, J. E. M., Dudley, N., Segan, D. B. & Hockings, M. Nature 515, 67–73 (2014).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Soga, M. & Gaston, K. J. Front. Ecol. Environ. 14, 94–101 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Maes, J., Paracchini, M. L., Zulian, G., Dunbar, M. B. & Alkemade, R. Biol. Conserv. 155, 1–12 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Maxwell, S. L. et al. Science 347, aaa1451 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Venter, O. et al. Sci. Data 3, 160067 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Avitabile, V. et al. Glob. Change Biol. 22, 1406–1420 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Jasechko, S. et al. Nature 496, 347–351 (2013).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Rockström, J. et al. Nature 461, 472–475 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Watson, J. E. M. & Venter, O. Nature 550, 48–49 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Watson, J. E. M. et al. Nat. Ecol. Evol. 2, 599–610 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Cowie, A. L. et al. Environ. Sci. Policy 79, 25–35 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Watson, J. E. M. et al. Conserv. Lett. 9, 413–421 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank S. Butchart, N. Dudley, T. Evans, P. Langhammer and M. Mulligan for feedback on a draft manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

    Martine Maron, Jeremy S. Simmonds & James E. M. Watson

  2. Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

    Martine Maron, Jeremy S. Simmonds & James E. M. Watson

  3. Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, Bronx, NY, USA

    James E. M. Watson

Authors
  1. Martine Maron
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jeremy S. Simmonds
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. James E. M. Watson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Martine Maron.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Maron, M., Simmonds, J.S. & Watson, J.E.M. Bold nature retention targets are essential for the global environment agenda. Nat Ecol Evol 2, 1194–1195 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-018-0595-2

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-018-0595-2

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing