Key Biodiversity Area
The Key Biodiversity Areas approach helps to identify and designate areas of international importance in terms of biodiversity conservation using globally standardised criteria. KBAs extend the Important Bird Area concept to other taxonomic groups and are now being identified in many parts of the world, by a range of organisations. Examples include Important Plant Areas, Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas in the High Seas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites, Prime Butterfly Areas, Important Mammal Areas and Important Sites for Freshwater Biodiversity, with prototype criteria developed for freshwater molluscs and fish and for marine systems. The determination of KBAs often brings sites onto the conservation agenda that hadn't previously been identified as needing protection due to the nature of the two non-exclusive criteria used to determine them; vulnerability; and irreplaceabilityObjectives
- Develop technical and conservation capacity within individual countries and on a global scale
- Develop partnerships between key organisations – both governmental and nongovernmental – concerned with site conservation
- Build broad understanding of the process, and broad ownership of the final site list
- Focus any new survey work on the most important gaps in knowledge
