KLCs and Nature’s Strongholds in Central Africa.

The Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), signed in 2022 by Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, recognized the importance of area-based conservation, and its goals and targets specify the characteristics of protected and conserved areas (PCAs) that disproportionately contribute to biodiversity conservation. To achieve the GBF’s target of conserving a global area of 30% by 2030, this Essay argues for recognizing these characteristics and scaling them up through the conservation of areas that are: extensive (typically larger than 5,000 km2); have interconnected PCAs (either physically or as part of a jurisdictional network, and frequently embedded in larger conservation landscapes); have high ecological integrity; and are effectively managed and equitably governed. These areas are presented as “Nature’s Strongholds,” illustrated by examples from the Congo and Amazon basins. Conserving Nature’s Strongholds offers an approach to scale up initiatives to address global threats to biodiversity.

2022年由《生物多样性公约》缔约方签署的《全球生物多样性框架》（Global Biodiversity Framework, GBF）认可了基于区域的保护的重要性，其宗旨与目标明确了对生物多样性保护贡献远超平均水平的保护与保育区域（Protected and Conserved Areas, PCAs）的核心特征。为达成《全球生物多样性框架》设定的到2030年保护全球30%区域的目标，本文主张认可上述特征，并通过保护以下类型的区域来推广此类保护实践：面积广袤（通常大于5000平方千米）、保护与保育区域互联互通（既可通过物理连接实现，也可作为管辖网络的组成部分，且常嵌入更大尺度的保护景观之中）、生态完整性较高，以及管理高效且治理公平的区域。这类区域被称为“自然要塞（Nature’s Strongholds）”，文中以刚果盆地与亚马孙盆地的实际案例进行了示例说明。保护“自然要塞”可为扩大应对全球生物多样性威胁的保护行动提供可行路径。