01/13/2026
On January 7th, 2026 President Donald Trump withdrew the United States of America from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) by executive order. This is yet another setback in a long long list of escalating and cascading threats to nature at the hands of the Trump Administration.
Founded in 1948, the IUCN is an international organization working in conservation and the use of natural resources. They have become a powerhouse in detailing the measures needed to safeguard nature and protect our resources.
You can read the entire executive order at the link below, and our statement here:
The IUCN is the largest global environmental network and is instrumental in both gathering data and conducting research on biodiversity. This data and research is essential to inform international conservation agreements and policies. The IUCN brings together both governmental and non-governmental organizations. Since its inception in 1948, it has co-drafted and supported numerous international treaties including the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which regulates international trade of vulnerable animals and plants, and the World Heritage Convention, which protects cultural and natural sites that have exceptional value. The IUCN Red List serves as a globally recognized and comprehensive inventory of the status of species around the world. Over 172,000 species have been assessed and these assessments are critical for guiding conservation actions not only in the United States, but globally as well. In addition, the IUCN Green List Standard has been incredibly influential in managing protected areas, and has been foundational to the success of numerous restoration and conservation projects.
The United States’ withdrawal from the IUCN could have cascading effects in scientific research in the United States that is supported by or conducted in collaboration with the IUCN. The continued withdrawal of the United States from environmental networks, treaties and agreements has the potential to erode trust with global partners, and set back our own conservation efforts. All Americans rely on healthy environments and plentiful resources in order to not only survive, but thrive. The IUCN Red List assesses and monitors important fisheries species such as tunas and abalones. The withdrawal from the IUCN, coupled with disturbing proposals surrounding bedrock wildlife protection policies like the Endangered Species Act, indicates a dangerous trend which could lead to the degradation and possible loss of some of our most commercially, culturally and socially valuable resources.
We must speak out and stand up to protect our oceans and our access to all nature has to offer. Clean air, clean water, and abundant wildlife: that’s what makes America great. In 1893, Katharine Lee Bates wrote a poem while overlooking the beautiful landscape of Pikes Peak, Colorado which would become lyrics to the song “America the Beautiful.”
“O beautiful for spacious skies.
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!”
This is the beauty she saw in our country, and this is the beauty we hope to leave behind for future generations, but we cannot do that if we continue to erode foundational infrastructure that monitors and protects that which we hold dear. Stand with us in our fight for Nature!
Link to Executive Order: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/01/withdrawing-the-united-states-from-international-organizations-conventions-and-treaties-that-are-contrary-to-the-interests-of-the-united-states/
