The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has, for the first time, officially recognised fossil fuels production as a direct threat to nature. The announcement came on October 16 during the IUCN World Conservation Congress, where members adopted Motion 042.
The motion calls on governments to phase out coal, oil, and gas, stop approving new extraction projects, and ensure a fair transition for workers and affected communities. It marks the strongest conservation language ever used against fossil fuels in a global forum.
The IUCN urged countries and civil society to address the root causes of the climate and biodiversity crises through supply-side measures. Ralph Regenvanu, Vanuatu’s Minister for Climate Change, called it a historic moment. He said the world can no longer protect nature while expanding fossil fuel use and that the decision shows real courage ahead of COP30 in Belém, Brazil.
major shift in conservation policy
Motion 042 was introduced by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and supported by groups such as BirdLife International, the Coordinadora de la Organizaciones Indígenas de la Cuenca Amazónica (COICA), and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
The motion also encourages the creation of new international tools, including a potential Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. Supporters said this step fills a critical gap in global climate governance by directly addressing the supply of fossil fuels rather than just emissions.
Fernanda Carvalho from WWF International said the decision unites the climate and nature agendas, stressing that phasing out fossil fuels is essential to reverse both environmental crises. Harjeet Singh, an advisor to the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, said the move exposes how the absence of a global plan to phase out coal, oil, and gas has worsened both climate and biodiversity threats.
Indigenous voices and road to COP30
Indigenous representatives welcomed the outcome as long-overdue recognition of the damage caused by fossil extraction. Fany Kuiru Castro, general coordinator of COICA, said fossil fuel projects have destroyed Indigenous territories for generations. She added that there can be no real conservation without Indigenous rights and no climate justice without a full and fair fossil fuel phase-out.
The decision comes just weeks before COP30, where governments will face pressure to align climate, biodiversity, and energy policies. Observers say the IUCN’s stance could influence global negotiations by framing fossil fuel phase-out as a conservation necessity. A senior delegate at the Congress said the vote signals that the conservation community will no longer remain silent on fossil fuels.
With Motion 042 and related measures now adopted, the IUCN has sent a clear message ahead of COP30: protecting nature means ending fossil fuel expansion and moving rapidly toward a fair and sustainable transition.
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