article · Ecology Letters
The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework requires 196 participating parties to report on the status of genetic diversity across all species. To support this mandate, indicators were created to assess whether distinct populations are maintained and whether populations are sufficiently large to preserve genetic diversity, with or without DNA-based data. A multinational evaluation examined these indicators across 919 taxa and 5,271 populations in nine countries, encompassing both megadiverse nations and developing economies. Data were accessible to calculate at least one indicator for 83 percent of the evaluated taxa. While most species successfully retain the majority of their populations, 58 percent of species have populations that are too small to safeguard genetic diversity. Furthermore, standard assessments like the IUCN Red List fail to adequately capture genetic status, establishing the necessity of dedicated genetic indicators.
Maintaining genetic diversity is vital for species survival and ecosystem resilience under global environmental pressures. Without reliable metrics, international conservation commitments cannot be measured or managed effectively. Demonstrating that genetic diversity indicators work across diverse countries and taxa provides governments with practical tools to track biodiversity loss and address gaps left by conventional conservation tools like the IUCN Red List.
The evaluation demonstrates an applied and tested reporting framework for conservation agencies, policymakers, and environmental consultancies tasked with compliance under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Because the metrics function with or without DNA-based datasets, they offer an accessible monitoring approach for both well-resourced and developing nations. The methodology is ready for real-world adoption by national biodiversity monitoring programmes to identify at-risk populations and guide conservation investments.
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Under the recently adopted Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, 196 Parties committed to reporting the status of genetic diversity for all species. To facilitate reporting, three genetic diversity indicators were developed, two of which focus on processes contributing to genetic diversity conservation: maintaining genetically distinct populations and ensuring populations are large enough to maintain genetic diversity. The major advantage of these indicators is that they can be estimated with or without DNA-based data. However, demonstrating their feasibility requires addressing the methodological challenges of using data gathered from diverse sources, across diverse taxonomic groups, and for countries of varying socio-economic status and biodiversity levels. Here, we assess the genetic indicators for 919 taxa, representing 5271 populations across nine countries, including megadiverse countries and developing economies. Eighty-three percent of the taxa assessed had data available to calculate at least one indicator. Our results show that although the majority of species maintain most populations, 58% of species have populations too small to maintain genetic diversity. Moreover, genetic indicator values suggest that IUCN Red List status and other initiatives fail to assess genetic status, highlighting the critical importance of genetic indicators.
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DOI: 10.1111/ele.14461
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