FAQs

‘Nature Positive’ requires that nature will be visibly and measurably on the path of recovery by 2030. In line with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), it sets a vision of a world where the future state of nature is greater than its current state, to ensure the health of people, the planet and the economy.

Developed through extensive consultation (November 2023–March 2024), IUCN RHINO addresses the urgent need for measurable, high-integrity biodiversity contributions, particularly from the private sector. In doing so, the IUCN RHINO approach provides a science-based, actionable track for companies, financial institutions, governments, and civil society to contribute to the KMGBF and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

IUCN RHINO envisions “a world where nature loss is reversed with fast, focused action, grounded in science.” It enables rapid, verifiable contributions to biodiversity goals, focusing on reducing species extinction risk and ecosystem collapse. The approach is aligned with global initiatives including the Nature Positive Initiative, Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), and Science Based Targets Network (SBTN).

Nature Positive means transforming the global economy so that nature’s value is embedded in systems and institutions, aiming to reverse nature loss by 2050. Achieving such transformation requires collective action across governments, businesses, communities, Indigenous Peoples, and civil society.

The core metric of the IUCN RHINO approach is STAR (Species Threat Abatement and Restoration), derived from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™. It quantifies extinction risk reduction through:

• STAR_T: Threat abatement
• STAR_R: Restoration

STAR is spatially explicit, scalable, and supports aggregation across sites, portfolios, and jurisdictions. It can be used to assess opportunities (estimated STAR), calculate a baseline and identify priority actions that need to be taken (calibrated STAR), set a target (target STAR), and evaluate how actions have contributed to reducing threats to species (realised STAR).

Ecosystem metrics are under development, based on the Red List of Ecosystems (RLE) and other global typologies.

IUCN RHINO adopts the Nature Positive Initiative definition: “Halt and reverse nature loss by 2030 on a 2020 baseline, and achieve full recovery by 2050.” Companies adopting a nature positive goal or target should base their actions on ten fundamental principles, including avoiding and mitigating impacts, mainstreaming biodiversity, collaborating across landscapes and sectors, ensuring transparency and equity, and aligning with global goals.

IUCN RHINO also emphasizes local and system-scale integrity, ensuring actions are scientifically robust, socially equitable (respecting IPLCs and applying FPIC), and transparent. It integrates IUCN standards and aligns with global policy frameworks.

While IUCN RHINO is not a complete solution, it provides a means for companies to embark on no-regrets actions that are robust and scientifically supported. It is structured around three impact tracks:

• A. Direct Impact – for companies with spatial control over land/seascapes
• B. Value Chain Impact – for companies sourcing commodities with biodiversity footprints
• C. Investor Impact – for financial institutions influencing biodiversity via portfolios

The current version of the approach emphasises the first track, with the Value Chain Impact and Investor Impact tracks to be further developed.

Established in 1964, The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ has evolved to become the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global conservation status of animal, fungi, and plant species.

The IUCN Red List is a critical indicator of the health of the world’s biodiversity. Far more than a list of species and their status, it is a powerful tool to inform and catalyse action for biodiversity conservation and policy change, critical to protecting the natural resources we need to survive. It provides information about range, population size, habitat and ecology, use and/or trade, threats, and conservation actions that will help inform necessary conservation decisions.

The Species Threat Abatement and Restoration (STAR) metric, based upon the IUCN Red List, measures the contribution that investments can make to reducing species’ extinction risk. It helps governments, cities, civil society, the finance industry, investors, and companies to target their investments and activities to achieve conservation outcomes and contribute to global policy aims.

The STAR metric assesses the potential of particular actions at specific locations to contribute to global sustainability targets, supporting science-based targets for species biodiversity.

STAR measures the potential contribution of two kinds of action to reduce species extinction risk:

• threat abatement
• habitat restoration

This makes it possible to identify actions that will yield benefits for threatened species, and enables actors to add up their total contributions to preventing biodiversity loss.

STAR is the metric used by the IUCN RHINO approach.

IBAT – the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool, is an alliance of four of the world’s largest and most influential conservation organisations: BirdLife International, Conservation International, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC).

IBAT provides access to data and tools, including several that facilitate the IUCN RHINO approach, together with guidance that helps organisations act on biodiversity-related risks and opportunities. Revenues are invested in the underlying biodiversity datasets. It is arguably the world’s most authoritative biodiversity data platform, providing trusted data to assess biodiversity risks and align with global frameworks to support Nature Positive goals.