Abu Dhabi: The UAE has won the bid to host the 2025 World Conservation Congress of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Abu Dhabi. The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) submitted the bid on behalf of Abu Dhabi and the UAE government.
The results were announced on May 25, following approval of the IUCN’s bid evaluation committee recommendations to the IUCN Governing Council at its meeting held in Gland, Switzerland, from May 23–25, 2023.
The successful bid to host the IUCN World Conservation Congress in 2025 further reaffirms the UAE and its leadership’s commitment to environmental conservation, climate change action, and sustainability. The agency’s Managing Director, Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, is the current President of the IUCN, while the EAD’s Secretary-General, Dr. Shaikha Salem Al Dhaheri, is a Global Councillor.
Winning the bid to host the IUCN Congress in 2025 is significant and a reflection of the vision of our President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. It will be an opportunity to showcase the UAE’s conservation leadership in protecting and restoring endangered species, both in the country and globally. We will make the IUCN 2025 Congress one of the most impactful, effective, and decisive congresses to date. We will work with the conservation community to protect our planet to avert biodiversity and climate crises.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler’s Representative in Al Dhafra Region, shared.
Ms. Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment, affirmed that the selection of Abu Dhabi as the host city for the 2025 Conference is another honour added to the UAE’s record full of accomplishments, particularly in the field of environmental, natural, and climate preservation, during the Year of Sustainability.
The World Conservation Congress of the IUCN, held every four years, is the highest organ of the Union and sees duly accredited delegates of the members of the IUCN meeting in session. The IUCN WCC 2025 will be held in Abu Dhabi in October 2025 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC).
The event is expected to bring an estimated 10,000–15,000 delegates from over 160 countries across the globe and will be an event that could galvanise conservation actions to protect our planet amid local and global challenges.