IUCN WCPA Best Practice Protected Area Guidelines, Technical Reports and related documents Schedule

IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and the Global Protected Areas Programme (GPAP) maintain the IUCN WCPA Best Practice Protected Area Guidelines, Technical Reports and related protected area publications. In October 2010, the Best Practice Protected Area Series took on even greater relevance when the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) COP10 in Nagoya mandated IUCN to advise parties on how best to implement the CBD Strategic Plan and the Programme of Work on Protected Areas. We regard an updated series of Best Practice Guidelines endorsed by both IUCN and the CBD to be an important contribution to this task.

The IUCN WCPA Publications Policy, endorsed by the IUCN WCPA Steering Committee, 6th April 2011, requires the IUCN WCPA Executive Committee (EXCO) to approve each publication and to appoint a Publication Manager for each publication. These decisions are reflected in the Table below. See theWCPA Publications policy here: and the Best Practice Protected Areas Guidelines Series Editorial Policy and Guidance for Authors here:

Best Practice Protected Area Guidelines Series -Completed Products / Publication date / Series Editor / Translations*/Notes
BP1: National Systems Planning for Protected Areas / 1998 / Adrian Phillips / A, C, E, R
BP2: Economic Values of Protected Areas / 1998 / Adrian Phillips / E, R
BP3: Guidelines for Marine Protected Areas / 1999 / Adrian Phillips / E
BP4: Indigenous Peoples and Protected Areas / 2000 / Adrian Phillips / E, S
BP5: Financing Protected Areas / 2000 / Adrian Phillips / E
BP6: Evaluating Effectiveness: A Framework for Assessing the Management of Protected Areas: 1st edition / 2000 / Adrian Phillips / C, E, R- 1st Edition
E, F- 2nd Edition
BP7: Transboundary Protected Areas for Peace and Cooperation / 2001 / Adrian Phillips / C, E
BP8: Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas / 2002 / Adrian Phillips / C, E, R
BP9: Management Guidelines for IUCN Category V Protected Areas Protected Landscapes/Seascapes / 2002 / Adrian Phillips / C, E, F, S
BP10: Guidelines for Management Planning of Protected Areas / 2003 / Adrian Phillips / A, C, E, F, J
BP11: Indigenous and Local Communities and Protected Areas: Towards Equity and Enhanced Conservation / 2004 / Adrian Phillips / E
BP12: Forests and Protected Areas: Guidance on the use of the IUCN Protected Area Management Categories / 2006 / Adrian Phillips / E
BP13: Sustainable Financing of Protected Areas / 2006 / Peter Valentine / E
BP14 Evaluating Effectiveness: A Framework for Assessing the Management of Protected Areas: 2nd edition / 2006 / Peter Valentine / E, F
BP15: Identification and Gap Analysis of Key Biodiversity Areas: Targets for Comprehensive Protected Area Systems / 2006 / Peter Valentine / E, F
BP16: Sacred Natural Sites: Guidelines for Protected Area Managers / 2008 / Peter Valentine / E, ES, F, K, R, S
BP17: Protected Area Staff Training: Guidelines for Planning and Management / 2011 / Peter Valentine / E
BP18: Ecological Restoration for Protected Areas: Principles, Guidelines and Best Practices / 2012 / Peter Valentine / E, F, K
BP19: Guidelines for applying the IUCN Protected Area Management Categories to Marine Protected Areas: Supplement to the 2008 IUCN Guidelines for Applying Protected Area Management Categories / 2012 / Peter Valentine / E, F, S
BP20: Governance of Protected Areas: From Understanding to Action / 2013 / Adrian Phillips / E, F, S, IT
BP21: Guidelines for Applying Protected Area Management Categories (reprint of 2008 publication) Including IUCN WCPA Best Practice Guidance on Recognising Protected Areas
and Assigning Management Categories and Governance Types by Sue Stolton,
Peter Shadie and Nigel Dudley / 2013 / Nigel Dudley and Sue Stolton / A, E, F, J, K, S (2008 publication)
BP22: Urban Protected Areas: Profiles and best practice guidelines / 2014 / Craig Groves / E
BP23: Transboundary Conservation: A systematic and integrated approach / 2105 / Craig Groves / E
IUCN WCPA Publications not in Best Practice Protected Areas or Technical Reports- Completed / IUCN WCPA Publications not in Best Practice Protected Areas or Technical Reports- Completed / Editors / Notes
Protected Area Governance and Management / 2015 / Graeme Worboys, Michael Lockwood, Ashish Kothari, Sue Feary and Ian Pulsford / E
Available as an E-Book.
IUCN WPA Technical Report Series-Completed Products
TR1: The Futures of Privately Protected Areas / 2014 / Sue Stolton, Kent Redford, Nigel Dudley et al / E, P
WCPA Technical Report Series – In Production / Lead
Author (LA) or Publications Manager (PM) / Editors / Notes
Anti-Poaching in and around Protected Areas: A Training Guide for Field Rangers / Wayne Lotter / Wayne D. Lotter, Keith A. Roberts, Rohit Singh, Krissie Clark, Crispian J.E.A. Barlow, Ruben de Kock, Kurt W. Steiner, Damien Mander, MadhavKhadka and Julián Guerrero / Approved by EXCO via email February 8, 2014. Funding secured from WWF-US. Copy edited and external peer review version completed April 2016.
Global Register of Protected Area Competences and User Guide / Mike Appleton / Approved by EXCO at April 2015 WCPA SC; draft document peer reviewed by WCPA Publication Committee April 2016, revisions underway in May 2016 for final draft to be read by Series Editor CRG and Trevor S. Planned publication by WCC.
Best Practice Protected Area Guidelines in Production / Lead Author (LA) or Publications Manager (PM) / Editors ++ / Notes
Designs for Nature: Regional Conservation Planning, Implementation and Management / Madeleine McKinnon, Robert L. Pressey, Edward T. Game / Samantha Weber, Stephen Woodley / Approved by WCPA Chair in 2008. Copy edit version received April 2016, some figure permissions still needed, Series Editor CRG needs to do final read and then send to layout & design
Tourism and Visitor Managementin Protected Areas
Guidelines for sustainability: (BP8 under revision) / Yu-Fai Leung (LA) / Yu-Fai Leung, Anna Spenceley, Glen Hvenegaard and Ralf Buckley / TAPAS Groupcoordinating the work. External peer review completed March 2016, plans in place to produce finalized pdf in English by WCC pending approval by Series Editor CRG and Trevor S.
Climate Change and Protected Areas / Leigh Welling and Stephen Woodley (co-PM and LA) / John Gross / Approved by WCPA EXCO 7 April 2011. Draft presented at WPC Nov. 2014 for input. Copy edited and revised manuscript due to Series Editor CRG in early May 2016.
Managing Alien Invasive Species in Protected Areas / Piero Genovesi (PM) / Andrea Monaco, Phil Andreozzi, Jack Ranney, / Approved by EXCO 10 May 2012. Draft presented at WPC November 2014. First draft expected in March 2017 approximate.
Cultural and Spiritual Significance of Protected Areas: Guidelines for Protected Area Managers / Bas Verschuuren,
Edwin Bernbaum, ThymioPapayannis, Josep-Maria Mallarach, Vita de Waal, Radhika Borde, Will Tuladhar-Douglas / TBD / Approved by EXCO via email February 8, 2014. Workshops planned to help develop best practice guidelines in 2016 and 2017. Still fundraising for best practice guidelines as of January 2016. No completion date available as of 5/2016.
Healthy Parks Healthy People Best Practice PA Guideline / Ian Walker (PM) / John Senior / Proposal approved by WCPA EXCO on 10 May 2013 via email. Rough outline presented at the Nov. 2014 WPC. First draft of guidelines expected sometime in 2016.
SocialAssessment of Protected Areas / Colleen Corrigan and Dilys Roe, (PM); Phil Franks (LA) / Ro Hill and colleagues / Approved by WCPA EXCO on 22 March 2013. A draft will be presented at the WPC November 2014. Projected completion date early 2016.
Wilderness Protected Areas: Management Guidelines for IUCN Category 1b / Cyril Kormos and Vance Martin (PM) / TBD / Approved by EXCO 10 May 2012. Internally peer reviewed draft guidelines completed and sent to CRG during May 2016. Authors want completion by WCC.
Guidelines on the Design and Management of Large-Scale MPAs / Nai’a Lewis / Big Ocean and the IUCN WCPA-Marine Very Large MPA Task Force / Proposal approved by WCPA EXCO April 2013. Internally peer reviewed draft sent to Series Editor CRG and Lauren Wenzel for editing in May 2016, team wishes to finalize by WCC.
Publication Project Proposals pending review by the WCPA Executive Committee / Lead Author (LA) or Publications Manager (PM) / Editor++ / Notes
Best Practice Guideline on Geoheritage Conservation in Protected Areas / Roger Crofts / WCPA EXCO will review proposed publication application in May 2016
Publication Project Proposals discussed but not yet submitted to the WCPA EXCO for consideration / Point of contact / Editor++ / Notes
Best Practice Guidelines on Management of category VI Protected Areas / Claudio Maretti / TBD / Draft proposal submitted to D. Reynolds for review July 2013.
Islands and Protected Areas / Lloyd Gardner / TBD / Draft proposal submitted July 2013 that included a rough budget

*Translations Key: A=Arabic, B=Bulgarian, C=Chinese, E=English, ES=Estonian, F=French, G=German, H=Hungarian, I=Indonesian, IT=Italian, J=Japanese, K=Korean, P=Portuguese, R=Russian, S=Spanish, T=Thai, TU=Turkish, U=Ukrainian

++ An IUCN WCPA Best Practice Protected Areas Guideline Editor will coordinate with each publication author/editors to ensure consistency in quality and style for the guidelines.

Suggestions/updates may be directed to: David Reynolds, Senior Advisor, Protected Areas Capacity Development, Global Protected Areas Programme, IUCN, at

May 2016