Held every four years, the IUCN World Conservation Congress (WCC) is a key event for governments and civil society to chart the path for conservation action in the years to come. At the 2025 WCC - in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates - the Global Environment Facility convened a Whole-of-Society Pavilion and organized over three dozen events at the Forum to highlight the ways the GEF family of funds is working to bring about transformative change for nature.
All people are dependent upon nature for their lives and livelihoods, and everyone has a role to play in ensuring that we conserve, restore, and sustainably use it. Ensuring that everyone is involved as a partner in conservation, with a voice and an active role to play, reflects our whole-of-society approach to making lasting positive change.
By integrating diverse perspectives into environmental policy and practice, and bringing together resources from different groups in society, this approach is designed to improve conservation outcomes by making efforts more effective, equitable, and sustainable.
This is why the GEF works directly with civil society organizations, Indigenous Peoples and local communities, women, youth, the private sector, and others to achieve and sustain global environmental benefits. GEF projects are designed to create entry points for whole-of-society collaboration, together with governments, and to bring measurable benefits for communities as well as the environment.
