Share of Earth Protected (2025)
This pie chart illustrates the proportion of the planet’s surface that is currently under formal protection, distinguishing between terrestrial/inland water areas and marine areas. As of May 2025, about 17.6% of land and inland waters and 8.5% of marine areas are protected. The remainder of the planet remains unprotected, highlighting the significant gap that exists relative to global conservation targets.
Progress Toward 30% Protected by 2030
This bar chart compares the current percentage of protected land and marine areas to the international “30x30” target, which aims for 30% of both realms to be protected by 2030. The data shows that while nearly 18% of land is protected, marine protection lags behind at just over 8%. Both categories require substantial increases in coverage to meet the 2030 goal, with marine areas needing the most rapid expansion.
Key Biodiversity Areas: Protection Status (2025)
This bar chart shows the proportion of Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs)-sites identified as being critically important for the persistence of biodiversity-that are at least partially protected versus those that remain unprotected. About two-thirds of KBAs have some protection, but one-third still lack any formal conservation status. This underscores the need to focus future protection efforts on the most ecologically significant sites.
Protected Areas with Management Effectiveness Assessment
This bar chart displays the percentage of protected areas on land and at sea that have undergone formal assessment of their management effectiveness. Fewer than 5% of terrestrial and just over 1% of marine protected areas have been evaluated for how well they are managed. This highlights a major challenge: not only is more area needed under protection, but the quality and effectiveness of management must also be improved to achieve real conservation outcomes.