The extent to which Belize’s economy depends on tourism generated by the threatened Belize Barrier Reef World Heritage site has been revealed for the first time today by a new report launched by WWF and partner organizations. The report, Natural Heritage, Natural Wealth, aims to highlight the incredible resource the country is at risk of losing.

A report form WWF Germany warns the world must do more to sustainably manage fishing if we’re to address increasing global demand for protein in the coming decades. If the situation doesn’t improve, millions of people may no longer be able to afford fish by 2050, particularly those in developing coastal countries. 

The Living Planet Report, produced every two years by WWF, is a comprehensive study of trends in global biodiversity and the health of the planet. By providing an overview of the state of the natural world, human impacts and potential solutions, it aims to support governments, communities, businesses and organizations to make informed decisions on using and protecting the planet’s resources.

Offshore oil and gas drilling in the Arctic is a disastrous idea. It would lead to the release of millions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere at a time when we should be cutting emissions. There’s also the near-certain risk of spills. This infographic lays out the detailed case for keeping the oil under the sea.

Climate change is already changing the Arctic, and current carbon reduction commitments will not be enough to stop this transformation cold. Instead, world leaders must focus on helping the region adapt and accelerate a reduction in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This paper summarizes the outcomes of this workshop and highlights how world leaders can move forward.

WWF’S Rapid Assessment of Circus-Arctic Ecosystem Resilience (RACER) presents a new tool for identifying and mapping places of conservation importance throughout the Arctic. This introductory handbook is intended as a general roadmap to the RACER method. It describes the approach and its use of the best available data to create maps of arctic key features as targets for future conservation efforts.

WWF's Living Blue Planet Report takes a deep look at the health of our oceans and the impact of human activity on marine life. Data on marine ecosystems and human impacts upon them is limited, reflecting the lack of attention the ocean has received to date. Nevertheless, the trends shown here present a compelling case for action to restore our ocean to health.

A new WWF commissioned analysis shows there is a strong economic case for protecting ocean assets through expanding Marine Protected Areas globally. The report finds that increased protection of critical habitats could result in net benefits of between US $490 billion and US $920 billion accruing over the period 2015-2050.

Reviving the Oceans Economy: The Case for Action—2015 brings into focus the economic value our oceans represent for this planet, as the future of humanity depends on their healthy living conditions. While figures in the report are a vast underestimation, the economic assets at risk accurately portray the losses we will incur should we continue on the current destructive trajectory.

BCG Economic Valuation: Methodology and Resources outlines the analysis, assumptions, and data sources that informed Reviving the Oceans Economy: The Case for Action—2015 and its conclusions regarding the ocean’s annual contribution and asset valuation. This reports triangulates and refines existing primary research with new scientific evidence, generated by the Boston Consulting Group, in order to determine the first economic assessment of this kind.

Implementing robust traceability systems in supply chains makes it possible to obtain reliable, relevant information about many of the fundamental characteristics and qualities of seafood products. WWF's traceability principles are intended as goal statements and can be used as a benchmark that is applicable to a variety of existing or upcoming traceability systems. 

2014 Smart Gear competition winners include:

• 2014 Winner: Air Powered Sampling for Purse Seine Fisheries
• 2014 Runner-Up: Super Poly Shark
• 2014 Runner-Up: FRESWIND
• Special Bycatch Reduction in Tuna Fisheries Prize: Seabird Saver

WWF investigated the trade flow of illegal and legal crab harvested from Russian waters throughout the North Pacific to better understand the likelihood of US importation of illegally harvested Russian crab, as well as conservation concerns associated with overharvest of crab from Russian waters.

The Living Planet Report documents the state of the planet—including biodiversity, ecosystems, and demand on natural resources—and what this means for humans and wildlife. Published by WWF every two years, the report brings together a variety of research to provide a comprehensive view of the health of the earth.

This paper investigates one key dimension of the global IUU problem by estimating the amount of illegal and unreported fish entering the US seafood market, one of the largest in the world.

The Learning Project report examines the lessons learned, results and outcomes of the U.S. Coral Triangle Initiative Support Program (CTSP).

A summary of the achievements, challenges, and lessons learned from investment in the Coral Triangle Support Partnership (CTSP), part of a broader USAID-funded effort to support the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security. Notable progress was made toward increasing stewardship of biodiversity and improving food security in the Coral Triangle.

Healthy and plentiful fisheries are not only good for marine ecosystems, but they are critical to the health, employment and prosperity of over a billion people around the world that rely on fisheries for food and jobs. Yet, half the globe’s fisheries have been pushed to their limits and another third have been pushed beyond their limits. The percentage of these “overfished” species has nearly quadrupled since the 1970s. A rights-based management program is one tool to address this issue. They convey and manage exclusive entitlements that allow a person, company, fishing vessel, community or village to fish in a particular place at a particular time.

The United States is the world’s largest consumer and importer of coral reef associated species for ornamental purposes, including aquaria, jewelry, curio and home décor. This report analyses the trade of coral reef associated species imported to the U.S. for ornamental purposes and examines issues and concerns related to the harvest, supply chain, and overall trade of some of the most threatened species in the trade. 

WWF commissioned these three reports to examine the current governance regime, identify governance and regulatory gaps and analyze options for improvements.

This report summarizes what has changed, and what remains unchanged in the 20 years since the 300-meter-long oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound on March 24, 1989.

This BioScience journal article presents the idea of Marine Ecoregions of the World (MEOW), a hierarchical global system of 12 realms, 62 provinces, and 232 ecoregions. MEOW offers a higher level of organization of marine life and is a critical planning and pattern analysis tool for conservation organizations like WWF.