View of the Pantanal biome including trees and grasslands

A view of the southern tip of the Pantanal biome —the world’s largest tropical wetland seasonally covering an area up to 210,000 km2 (or 81,000 square miles)—that stretches across Brazil, Bolivia, and Paraguay and supports more than 1,000 bird, 300 mammal, 500 reptile, 400 fish, and thousands of invertebrate species. (Credit CLLC / Aaron Laur)

Meeting at the southern gateway to the Pantanal biome, more than 2,000 people participated in the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS/CoP-15) held under the theme “Connecting Nature to Sustain Life” in Campo Grande (Brazil) from 23–29 March 2026. Throughout the week delegates addressed more than 100 agenda items including the 2027-2029 budget and Programme of Work, resource mobilization, a monitoring framework for the 2024-2032 Samarkand Strategic Plan for Migratory Species, and synergies with partners such as contributions of CMS to implementing the Convention on Biological Diversity’s  (CBD) Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. By close of these multilateral negotiations, Parties agreed to list 40 additional species or populations of species on CMS Appendices I (species in danger of extinction) or II (species in need of coordinated international action) as well as adopted a diversity of resolutions and decisions for addressing threats and implementing actions with a strengthened focus on ecological connectivity, international cooperation, and expanding partnerships. This article provides insights into progress made since CMS/CoP-14 and increasing commitments and contributions to achieve concrete ecological connectivity conservation actions across countries for migratory species. 

High-level commitment 

An ambitious tone was set at the preceding High-level Segment on 22 March chaired by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva who was joined by Paraguay President Santiago Peña, ministers, and other stakeholders. During his address, the importance of the Convention, multilateralism, and ecological connectivity was highlighted by President Lula:    

The Convention on Migratory Species conveys a simple but powerful message: migration is natural. By crossing continents and connecting distant ecosystems, these species show that nature does not recognize the limits between States.  

The jaguar moves across nearly all preserved territories of the Americas in search of safe areas to hunt and reproduce. Like it, every year, millions of birds, mammals, reptiles, fish, and even insects cross continents and oceans. These journeys connect ecosystems, preserve natural cycles, and ensure the balance that makes life possible. Protecting these animals means protecting life itself on the planet. The survival of these species depends on collective action […]  

The theme of this High-Level Segment highlights something essential: there will be no lasting prosperity in Latin America without protecting our biodiversity. From the Amazon to the Cerrado, from the Pantanal to the Andes, from tropical forests to coastal zones, essential ecological corridors are formed for global climate balance. 

View inside conference of attendees and speakers

Brazil’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change Marina Silva opened the proceedings and set the scene: “The Pantanal is a land of encounters. It is where rivers become lakes, where forests open into fields, where birds from the North and South find a resting place. It is a link that reminds us that nature is not divided by rigid lines, but intertwined through generous transitions. We must connect nations, politics, science, and traditional knowledge to ensure that migratory species can continue their journeys.” (Credit CLLC / Aaron Laur)

Additionally, President Lula signed three decrees expanding Brazil’s conservation commitments including the creation of the new Córregos dos Vales do Norte de Minas Gerais Reserve, and significant expansions of Pantanal National Park and Taiamã Ecological Station that together represent approximately 145,000 hectares (559 square miles) of newly protected land. 

In her remarks at the segment, CMS Executive Secretary Amy Fraenkel announced release of the State of the World’s Migratory Species Interim Report (2026) and its findings that 49% of the over 1,200 unique migratory species protected under the Convention have declining populations, up from 44% two years ago. With this striking evidence at hand, she affirmed that this CMS/CoP-15 was pivotal for reaching decisions to reverse worsening trends and achieve many other international conservation commitments. Toward increasing cooperation, the Executive Secretary emphasized the need to halt and reverse the fragmentation of nature, and that the Global Partnership on Ecological Connectivity (GPEC) now stands ready to foster cooperation and collaboration across multiple stakeholders, sectors, and countries to scale up action. 

Toward the end of the segment, representatives adopted the Pantanal Declaration “Promoting Connectivity to Protect Migratory Wildlife” that includes: 

  • Stating “the need of maintaining, enhancing, and restoring ecological connectivity across terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems, particularly through wetlands and other key habitats along migratory routes, to ensure the survival and sustainability of migratory species and their habitats”; 
  • Encouraging Parties to include measures for conserving ecological connectivity in updated CBD National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) “[…] to support species’ movements on land, in the air, in rivers and at seas;” 
  • Alerting Parties to the need “to include in their economic development strategies and in the planning of infrastructure projects, measures that prevent impacts on the habitats of migratory species and their movement routes”; and  
  • Urging new and additional financial resources, capacity-building, and technical cooperation especially to support developing country Parties to more effectively implement necessary actions.   

CCSG’s leadership 

Over the course of CMS/CoP-15, CCSG Co-Chair Aaron Laur represented the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas joining IUCN’s official delegation. This included following agenda items related to ecological connectivity, linear infrastructure, and transboundary areas, and co-organizing official side events featuring presentations and discussions with experts from around the world. With CCSG members and partners, the side events showcased innovative collaboration for maintaining, enhancing, and restoring ecological connectivity to conserve migratory species, save biodiversity, and increase resilience to climate change around the world.  

Standing row of people

CCSG Co-Chair Aaron Laur, fourth from left, as part of the official IUCN Delegation to CMS/CoP-15. (Credit CLLC)

Policy momentum for connectivity conservation  

As part of formal negotiations, Parties considered a raft of background documents; reaching consensus by the last day to adopt new and updated policy resolutions and decisions about a diversity of issues and topics such as the following: 

  • Notably, the Resolution on “Ecological Connectivity” advances previous related commitments urging Parties inter alia when planning, implementing, and evaluating actions for migratory species to give special attention to “(iii)  identifying, strengthening and expanding, based on the best available science, ecological networks and corridors to conserve migratory species worldwide and enhancing their design and functionality;” and requesting “[…] the Secretariat to support Parties in the establishment and management of conservation areas, networks and corridors, including existing protected areas and Transfrontier Conservation Areas.”  
  • Additionally, the “Resolution on Impact Assessment and Migratory Species” advances commitments inter alia to fulfill the desire that migratory species, their habitats, and ecological connectivity “[…] be given high priority in biodiversity-related aspects of environmental impact assessment, including through cumulative effects assessments and strategic environmental assessments.”  
  • Complementary decisions on Transfrontier Conservation Areas also direct CMS’s Scientific Council to advance the tool Identifying Opportunities for Transboundary Conservation, and task the Secretariat — subject to resource availability and in cooperation with the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre — with further developing and maintaining the model of Transfrontier Conservation Areas. 

This progress and ongoing leadership of CMS will further propel and serve as inspiration around the world to conserve the ecological connectivity of species, habitats, and processes that support all life on Earth. Furthermore, these resolutions, resolutions, and decisions all reinforce and will continue to drive IUCN’s ongoing efforts across the Union implementing WCC-2025-Res-126 to “Recognising and Reporting Ecological Corridors” and WCC-2020-Res-071 for “Wildlife-friendly linear infrastructure” as well as WCC-2016-Res-035 toward achieving “Transboundary cooperation and protected areas”.  

Side Events: Ecological connectivity conservation in practice 

Among the nearly 60 official side events in Campo Grande, CCSG co-organized four events, each designed to advance the science, policy, and practice of ecological connectivity in different contexts. Here follow overviews: 

Standing row of people

Presenters at the side event Nature Positive Infrastructure – Avoiding and mitigating impacts of linear infrastructure on migratory species and ecological connectivity. Left to right: Fernanda Abra, Fernanda Teixeira, Tremaine Gregory, Steffen Mumme, Ruth Tiffer Sotomayor, Aaron Laur, Kate Newman, Duncan Lang, and Katie Deuel. (Credit CLLC / Gary Tabor)

Nature Positive Infrastructure – Avoiding and mitigating impacts of linear infrastructure on migratory species and ecological connectivity was held on 24 March with approximately 40 participants. They learned about innovative approaches in science, policy, financing, collaboration, and project implementation to support countries and stakeholders across sectors to fulfill their conservation commitments by avoiding and mitigating impacts of linear infrastructure. Topics and respective presenters were: 

Introduction 

  • Moderator welcome – Katie Deuel: Senior Conservation Director, Center for Large Landscape Conservation (CLLC) 
  • Highlights of CMS Progress Addressing Impacts of Infrastructure – Aaron Laur: International Connectivity Program, Center for Large Landscape Conservation (CLLC); Co-Chair, IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group (CCSG) 

Collaborative Initiatives 

  • IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group: Advancing Policy, Networks, Practice, and Collaboration – Aaron Laur: International Connectivity Program, Center for Large Landscape Conservation (CLLC); Co-Chair, IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group (CCSG) 
  • Insights from the Global Atlas on Ungulate Migration – Steffen Mumme: Spatial Ecologist, Global Initiative on Ungulate Migration (GIUM) 

National and Regional Innovations 

  • Reconecta: Applied Solutions for the Advancement of Sustainable Infrastructure in Brazil – Fernanda Abra: President, Reconecta Institute 
  • Collaborative Efforts Across IUCN to Address the Impacts of Linear Transport Infrastructure on Nature – Fernanda Teixeira: Linear Infrastructure Ecology Advisor, Center for Large Landscape Conservation (CLLC) 
  • Colombia’s Green Road Infrastructure Guidelines – Tremaine Gregory: Senior Scientist, Sustainable Infrastructure Team, WWF-US 

Scaling Solutions 

  • Development Projects and Nature Contributions – Ruth Tiffer Sotomayor: Senior Environmental Specialist, Global Environment Department, World Bank 
  • Snow Leopard Guidance – Tremaine Gregory Senior Scientist, Sustainable Infrastructure Team, WWF-US 
  • The CMS Energy Task Force – Duncan Lang: Principal Environment Specialist, Nature and Environment Division, Asian Development Bank 
  • Launch of a Community of Practice on Infrastructure and Nature (COPNI) – Kate Newman: Vice President, Sustainable Infrastructure and Public Sector Initiatives, WWF-US 

 

View inside conference of attendees and speakers

CMS Executive Secretary Amy Fraenkel (middle) delivering opening remarks at the side event Ecological Connectivity: A cross-cutting solution for achieving multiple environmental and socio-economic priorities. (Credit CLLC / Aaron Laur)

Ecological Connectivity: A cross-cutting solution for achieving multiple environmental and socio-economic priorities was held on 25 March with approximately 45 participants. It showcased how maintaining, enhancing, and restoring connectivity supports the achievement of multiple national and regional goals — environmental, social, and economic. Panelists, primarily representatives from CMS Parties, emphasized how connectivity underpins healthy ecosystems and in turn delivers benefits for people: improving food and water security, increasing climate resilience, and enhancing human well-being. The event also highlighted the role of ecological connectivity as a catalyst for transboundary and cross-sectoral cooperation, and drew attention to the now-fully-operational Global Partnership on Ecological Connectivity (GPEC), launched at CMS/COP-14 in Samarkand (Uzbekistan) in 2024 as a multilateral platform for scaling up connectivity action. Topics and speakers were: 

  • Moderator welcome – Anouska Kinahan, Coordinator, Global Partnership on Ecological Connectivity/CMS Secretariat 
  • Opening remarks – Amy Fraenkel, Executive Secretary, CMS Secretariat  
  • Connectivity and the Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework – Mariano Castro Jimenez, Consultant, CBD Secretariat 
  • The Importance of the Global Network of Wetlands of International Importance of the Convention on Wetlands for Ecological Connectivity – Zebedee Njisuh, Senior advisor Ramsar Convention on Wetlands 
  • Connectivity for a Sustainable Landscape in the Amazon – Carlos Eduardo Marinello, Chief of Staff and Deputy National Secretary at the National Secretariat for Biodiversity, Forests and Animal Rights, Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, Brazil 
  • France’s Green Belt – Blue Belt National Initiative – Florent Merle, Deputy director International Affairs, Office français de la biodiversité | French Agency for Biodiversity 
  • Connectivity in infrastructure planning and policy in Bolivia – Dr. Alejandro Araujo Muakami, Director of Biodiversity and Protected Areas, Ministry of Development Planning and Environment, Plurinacional Government of Bolivia

 

Standing row of people

Presenters at the side event From Partnerships to Practice: Advancing ecological connectivity action on the ground. Left to right: Anouska Kinahan, Rafael Antelo, Kyle Esperanza Zuleta, Aaron Laur, Ingrid Coetzee, Des Thomson, and Gary Tabor. (Credit CLLC)

From Partnerships to Practice: Advancing ecological connectivity action on the ground was held on 25 March gathering together approximately 25 participants. This event presented the progress of the GPEC drawing attention to ongoing initiatives promoting the conservation of migratory species and addressing threats to ecological connectivity. Furthermore, contributions highlighted recent advances in innovative approaches for planning, financing, and implementing initiatives and projects that advance connectivity, as well as existing and upcoming tools available for countries to report and track connectivity progress.  

Topics and respective presenters were: 

  • Moderator welcome – Gary Tabor, Professor of Conservation Practice, Cornell University, Department of Natural Resources and the Environment; Senior Faculty Fellow – Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability; Senior Advisor, IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group (CCSG) 
  • Connecting nature and advancing action through the Global Partnership on Ecological Connectivity – Anouska Kinahan, Coordinator, Global Partnership on Ecological Connectivity/CMS Secretariat 
  • Filling the gap: The Monte Carmelo Municipal Protected Area – Rafael Antelo, Wildlife Connect Leader and Pantanal-Chaco (PACHA) Coordinator, WWF International 
  • Ecological connectivity policy and practice for the East-Asian Australasian Flyway Partnership – Kyle Esperanza Zuleta, Programme Officer, East-Asian Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP) 
  • Policy integration for maintaining, enhancing, and restoring ecological connectivity – Aaron Laur, Manager, International Connectivity Program, Center for Large Landscape Conservation (CLLC); Co-Chair, IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group (CCSG) 
  • Ecological connectivity for conservation in cities around the world – Ingrid Coetzee, Director for Biodiversity, Nature, and Health, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability 
  • CMS Meta-Atlas: A Journey to a CMS Global Atlas of Animal Migration – Des Thomson representing Fernando Spina, CMS COP-Appointed Councilor on Connectivity/Climate change 
Standing row of people

Presenters and organizers of the side event Bridging the gap: Leveraging animal movement and mapped migration corridors to inform national conservation policy. Left to right: Aaron Laur, Autumn-Lynn Harrison, Doris Rodriguez, Ruth Tiffer-Sotomayor, Tristan Nunez, Stella Uiterwaal, and Janey Fugate. (Credit CLLC)

Bridging the gap: Leveraging animal movement and mapped migration corridors to inform national conservation policy was held on 27 March with approximately 30 participants. During short presentations and a question-and-answer session, attendees learned how movement data (with a focus on migration) can be better integrated into conservation planning and policy by becoming more standardized, streamlined, and impactful by using tracking data, movement indicators, and maps to conserve migratory species. Topics and respective presenters were: 

  • MoveBON and the Shorebird Science and Conservation Collective – Autumn-Lynn Harrison, Research Ecologist at the Migratory Bird Center, Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute; 
  • The Global Initiative on Ungulate Migration – Tristan Nunez, Spatial Ecologist, Global Initiative on Ungulate Migration (GIUM) 
  • Applying Wildlife Movement Ecology in Peru – Doris Rodriguez, CMS National Focal Point; Peru Forestry and Wildlife Service  
  • An Example of Applying Wildlife Movement Data in the World Bank Project: Bhutan – Gelephu-Tareythang Road – Ruth Tiffer-Sotomayor, Senior Environmental Specialist, Global Environment Department, World Bank 
  • Translating Movement Data into Global Conservation Frameworks – Stella Uiterwaal, Researcher, MoveBON Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute 

Looking ahead 

João Paulo Ribeiro Capobianco, in his role as President of CMS/CoP-15, and as Executive Secretary at the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, made the closing speech, including the following statement:   

From the Pantanal to the Arctic, from the oceans to the savannas, migratory species connect our planet in ways no political map ever could. They remind us that ecological integrity depends on continuity of flows that must remain alive, uninterrupted, and resilient. And this is precisely what is at stake.  

Connectivity is not an abstract concept. It is the difference between survival and collapse. Between ecosystems that function and those that fail. To protect migratory routes, ecological corridors, and critical habitats is to protect the very fabric of life on Earth.  

As we conclude this Conference, we do not close a chapter. We open a mandate. Over the next three years, Brazil will work to strengthen this Convention expanding its membership, increasing its visibility, and building stronger bridges with other multilateral environmental agreements. We invite all Member States to join the Pantanal Declaration, placing wetlands at the center of the global conservation agenda.

And we move forward with a joint initiative among Amazonian countries to align policies, strengthen governance, and protect connectivity across one of the most strategic regions on Earth. These are not symbolic steps. They are structural. 

View inside conference of attendees and speakers

Closing of CMS/CoP-15 and standing ovation for outgoing CMS Executive Secretary Amy Fraenkel. (Credit CLLC / Aaron Laur)

The outcomes of CMS/CoP-15 represent meaningful and durable progress in efforts around the world to conserve ecological connectivity, the lifeblood of migratory species and the ecosystems they depend upon. The Pantanal Declaration, along with new and updated resolutions and decisions adopted in Campo Grande, reinforce an expanding international consensus: maintaining, enhancing, and restoring connectivity is a central pillar driving conservation science, policy, practice, and collaboration. For CCSG, CMS/CoP-15 also affirmed the importance of continued engagement at the science-policy-practice interface — bringing technical expertise, networks of partners, and field project experience to negotiations and side events where decisions are shaped. CCSG is committed to building on these outcomes in collaboration with our many valued partners carrying momentum in existing and new efforts to conserve ecological connectivity that transcends sectors, borders, and ecosystems. Lastly, we look forward to Germany – depository of the Convention and host of the CMS Secretariat – hosting CMS/CoP-16 in Bonn in 2029 coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the Convention. 

View of cattle grazing in grassland with storm clouds

Cattle grazing in the southern tip of the Pantanal biome. Close to 95% of the 210,000 km2 (or 81,000 square miles) of the seasonally flooded wetland is privately owned. (Credit CLLC / Aaron Laur)

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