It was a target the world spectacularly missed: “By 2020, the extinction of known threatened species has been prevented and their conservation status, particularly of those most in decline, has been improved and sustained.” It was an Aichi Target, set in 2010, that stemmed from the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. By the time of a 2020 review, most indicators of the 20 Aichi Targets had continued to decline.
But research from 2020 shows the goal is in fact, “eminently feasible”. Conservation efforts between 1993-2020 prevented the extinction of 28–48 bird and mammal species. Were the same approach applied to other creatures many could be saved from extinction.
It’s information that augurs well for the future of other threatened species.
