What is it?
Certification scheme issued or operated by International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Regulatory recognitionThe definitional reference for nature-based-solutions claims
Standards & schemes · Certification scheme
IUCN Global Standard for Nature-based Solutions
International Union for Conservation of Nature
Which version is current?
Profile version 2. Official information last verified 24 August 2026.
Who and what does it cover?
- Geography
- Global
- Sectors
- Nature-based projects and programmes
- Scope
- Project
What does it require?
Eight criteria — societal challenges, design at scale, biodiversity net gain, economic viability, governance, trade-off balancing, adaptive management, sustainability — that define what legitimately counts as NbS.
What it does not demonstrateThe scheme does not by itself prove that a particular product, site or organisation holds a current certificate; its scope and validity must be checked.
How is conformity assessed?
Self-assessment with verification guidance (8 criteria, 28 indicators)
Grievance mechanism—
Who makes the decision?
International Union for Conservation of Nature
Assurance arrangementSelf-assessment with verification guidance (8 criteria, 28 indicators)
Chain of custody
Not specified in this profile
ISEAL membership—
Conditional relationships
Claims it may support
A relationship does not mean that the standard proves or validates every use of a claim.
Legal context
Laws referencing it
No reviewed law references are published.
Dictionary
Dictionary concepts
No reviewed dictionary cross-link is published.
Version record
What has changed
- Version 2Initial profile published after recorded site-owner/editor review of the complete standards batch.
- Version 1Initial private editorial draft imported from the reviewed standards handover.
Last verified 24 August 2026. This neutral profile is informational and does not recommend, rank or endorse the standard.