Report released by the organization indicates that protected areas total more than 13 million km²
UNESCO report on Tuesday (April 21, 2026), in Paris, highlights the great contribution of its protected sites to people and the environment. Here is it, in English (PDF – 48 MB).
In Brazil, among the protected sites are some areas such as the Lençóis Maranhenses National Park, included on the UNESCO World Heritage list, during the 46th session of the World Heritage Committee in New Delhi, India, in July 2024.
Also on the list is the Iguaçu National Park, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1986.
“The area’s rich biodiversity includes more than 2,000 species of plants, 400 species of birds and possibly up to 80 mammals, as well as numerous species of invertebrates”a Unesco.
According to the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, Lençóis National Park is home to 4 endangered species:
- the guará (Eudocimus ruber);
- a neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis);
- o gato-do-mato (Leopardus tigrinus);
- the marine manatee (Trichechus manatus).
It is estimated that the region has around 133 species of plants, 112 species of birds and at least 42 species of reptiles.
Areas give stability
Although wild animal populations have declined by 73% worldwide since 1970, those living in UNESCO-protected areas have remained comparatively stable, the document says. A quarter of these sites, where more than 1,000 languages have been recorded, belong to indigenous peoples’ territories.
The report “People and Nature in Unesco Sites: Global and Local Contributions” (“Communities and nature at UNESCO Sites: local and global contributions”in Portuguese) examines, for the first time, as a single network, all UNESCO categories involving World Heritage Sites, Biosphere Reserves and World Geoparks.
There are more than 2,260 sites covering an area of more than 13 million km², larger than that of China and India combined.
Positive impacts
In the assessment of UNESCO’s director general, Khaled El-Enany, the sites protected by the institution produce positive impacts for people and nature.
“In these territories, communities thrive, humanity’s heritage endures and biodiversity is preserved, while it degrades in other places. The report measures the global value and contributions of these sites and reveals what we could lose if they are not prioritized”these.
According to El-Enany, the document is an urgent call to increase the level of ambition and recognize UNESCO sites as strategic assets to face climate change and biodiversity loss, “in addition to immediately investing in the protection of ecosystems, cultures and ways of life for future generations”.
Increasing pressure
The report shows that UNESCO sites are home to more than 60% of the species mapped across the globe, of which around 40% are found nowhere else on the planet. These sites store about 240 gigatons of carbon, or the equivalent of nearly two decades of current global emissions if that carbon were released, the document says.
Each gigaton of carbon corresponds to 1 billion tons. Annually, forests on UNESCO sites alone account for around 15% of the carbon absorbed by forests around the world.
UNESCO highlights that, despite their importance at a global level, these sites face increasing pressure. Almost 90% of them are subject to high levels of environmental stress. In the last decade alone, climate-related risks have increased by 40%.
The report makes it clear that more than 1 in 4 UNESCO sites could reach critical breaking points by 2050, with irreversible impacts. And, if there are no more robust actions, the risks could lead to the disappearance of glaciers, the collapse of coral reefs, the displacement of species, an increase in water stress and the transformation of forests from sinks into sources of carbon, highlights the document.
Connection
The report highlights the deep connection between nature and communities across all UNESCO sites, which together are home to almost 900 million people, or the equivalent of 10% of the world’s population.
“More than 1,000 languages are documented on UNESCO sites, and at least 25% of them cover lands and territories of indigenous peoples”says UNESCO.
This percentage increases to almost 50% in Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America. According to the report, analysis of economic production with the sites and their adjacent areas shows that around 10% of global GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is produced in these areas.
The survey says that future risks can be significantly reduced through actions that are implemented today: every 1°C of warming avoided could halve the number of UNESCO sites exposed to major disruptions by the end of the century.
These areas also have a potential that is still little explored in climate policies, the document points out. Although 80% of national biodiversity plans include UNESCO sites, only 5% of national climate plans do the same.
UNESCO’s recommendation is that actions be intensified, based on 4 priority pillars:
- restore ecosystems to rebuild resilience;
- promote sustainable development by strengthening cross-border cooperation;
- integrate UNESCO sites more broadly into global climate plans;
- adopt more inclusive governance with indigenous peoples and local communities.
Advantages
According to UNESCO, the sites under its protection demonstrate that people and nature can prosper together. Since “from the stabilization of wildlife populations in these territories, in contrast to global declines, to the successes of conservation actions such as the recovery of mountain gorillas in areas affected by armed conflict, these sites show what is possible when protection is sustained over time and is supported by local communities”.
Carried out in partnership with more than 20 leading research institutions around the world, the report highlights the need to increase this ambition for joint prosperity between people and the environment, recognizing UNESCO sites not just as conservation areas, but as strategic assets to address environmental and social challenges around the world.
“Investing in their protection today means safeguarding, for future generations, irreplaceable ecosystems, living cultures and the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people”the document states.
This text was originally by Agência Brasil, on April 21, 2026. The content is free for republication, citing the source, and was adapted to the standard of Poder360.
