New framework helps turn biodiversity goals into measurable action to help prevent species extinctions.
The new study by Newcastle University and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) offers a practical roadmap for tracking progress towards halting species extinctions by 2050. It guides users from understanding where species are most at risk in a given area, to guiding action to reducing species threats, and then measuring the real-world impact of conservation efforts on reducing species extinction risk over time.
Published in the journal Conservation Biology , the framework is based on the Species Threat Abatement and Restoration (STAR) metric, which was designed to support science-based target-setting at the species level. STAR works by quantifying the potential contribution to reducing species' extinction risk from threat abatement or habitat restoration in an area.
The conservation experts behind STAR have now created a framework for moving from scores for the threat abatement component of STAR, known as START, that are estimated using global data, through to refinements using local data, to target-setting, and finally to measurement of progress with realised START scores.
Adjusted to reflect local data, START works by confirming the local presence of species and threats. The locally verified data then allows for setting robust threat-abatement targets, which can be expressed as target START scores.
This means that the framework helps organisations turn the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework target to halt species extinction into meaningful local action, with the calibrated START also informing the need for both reactive and proactive threat management.
Dr Louise Mair , Research Fellow at Newcastle University, member of the IUCN Red List Management Committee's STAR Working Group and lead author of the paper, said: "Our new START framework allows the contribution of local actions towards global conservation targets to be measured, which not only supports decision making, but also, importantly, allows explicit recognition of just how globally significant local conservation action can be."
Professor Phil McGowan, Professor of Conservation Science and Policy at Newcastle University, Co-Chair of the IUCN Red List Management Committee's STAR Working Group, added: "It is hard to believe that the STAR approach was published only five years ago, given the extent of scientific development and uptake by businesses and others. This is another major step forward in providing science-based guidance for achieving global biodiversity goals."
Dr Thomas Brooks, Chief Scientist at IUCN, said: "This new framework gives conservationists and organisations a practical way to translate global biodiversity ambitions into local, measurable action. By connecting threat abatement and restoration to species extinction risk, it helps turn the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework into clearer priorities, stronger targets and more effective conservation on the ground."
STAR Metric
STAR is designed to help set – and monitor progress towards – robust, science-based targets for species conservation, by quantifying how actions to mitigate threats in a particular place could support species extinction risk reduction.
STAR was applied for the first time in on the ground to reveal the biggest threats driving species towards extinction in northern San José, Costa Rica . IUCN and Newcastle University scientists deployed STAR to show that the greatest potential to reduce species extinction risk in the Northern Sub-catchments of San José, lies in addressing habitat loss and degradation due to livestock farming and ranching, urban expansion, and the spread of non-native invasive species.
Reference
Mair, L., Bennun, L., Brooks, T. M., Jimenez, R., Macfarlane, N. B. W., Nello, T., Vergez, A., Berkoff, N., Butchart, S. H. M., Curet, F., Dakmejian, A., Ellis, E., Goldstein, B. R., McGowan, P. J. K., Ridley, F. A., Ross, A., Sneary, M. V., Starnes, T., Stephenson, P. J., ... Hawkins, F. (2026). Conceptual framework for the implementation of the Species Threat Abatement and Restoration metric's threat abatement component. Conservation Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.70387
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Additional quotes:
Annie Dakmejian, International Technical Expert, COP17 Presidency, Armenia: "Delivering on global biodiversity commitments means turning ambition into action where species need it most. STAR - the biodiversity metric based on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, offers a practical way to identify local threats, set science-based targets and measure progress towards reducing extinction risk. By linking local action to global goals, it can help countries, businesses and other actors focus their efforts, complement the set of and demonstrate how together we can realise the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework."
Dr PJ Stephenson; (Co-chair, IUCN SSC Species Monitoring Specialist Group and review editor for the IPBES methodological assessment of biodiversity monitoring): "As we review the state of global biodiversity monitoring, the advancement of STAR is very timely. As well as helping conservationists plan their actions to reduce threats, it offers a new and innovative indicator against which to measure progress and impact. I am excited to see how we can roll it out locally and globally."
Alex Ross, Senior Programme Officer, Nature Economy, UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC): "The STAR-T framework offers businesses a structured process to analyse key threats facing species in their operating landscapes, and link actions they take with reducing global extinction risk."
Edward Ellis, Senior Advisor to the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT): "Many companies already use STAR through IBAT to see where action could have the most impact for threatened species. The harder question is measuring what difference that action makes. This framework gives businesses a clear, practical path from global estimates to locally verified targets and measurable, real-world results, providing the evidence they need to demonstrate a genuine contribution to halting species extinctions."
