Communicating Conservation Wins: How Effective Communication of Success can Advance Target 3 Ambitions

Communicating conservation ‘bright spots’ – concrete, demonstrated wins for biodiversity – is vital for inspiring public confidence, mobilising political commitment, and maintaining the long-term financing needed to scale impact, specifically by expanding, replicating and accelerating actions that meaningfully improve biodiversity outcomes. Yet research on how best to frame and share these successes with diverse audiences remains limited. To address this gap, we surveyed 45 Canadian conservation experts on the benefits, challenges and opportunities of communicating positive ecological and social outcomes from protected and conserved area initiatives. Respondents strongly endorsed the value of success stories for demonstrating conservation impact, inspiring action and boosting morale within organisations, particularly in countering conservation grief. Narratives that connect people to landscapes – such as those highlighting Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas – were viewed as especially compelling. However, experts cautioned against oversimplification, which can obscure the complexity and resources required for effective and urgent conservation. Our findings underscore the need for strategic, evidence-based communication approaches that balance optimism with realism, integrate diverse knowledge systems, and resonate across audiences. These insights can inform efforts to advance national and international conservation goals and targets, including Targets 3 (expanding protected and conserved areas) and 21 (knowledge sharing) of the CBD Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.