IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology Tool

The IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology is 'a comprehensive classification framework for the Earth's ecosystems that integrates their functional and compositional features'. The typology is intended to help PA practitioners identify which ecosystems are critical to biodiversity conservation, research, management and human wellbeing.

Users start by selecting a ‘Realm of interest’, drilling deeper into one of the four core (Terrestrial, Marine, Freshwater, Subterranean) or six transitional (Marine-Terrestrial, Subterranean-Freshwater, Freshwater-Marine, Marine-Freshwater-Terrestrial, Subterranean-Marine, Terrestrial-Freshwater) realms.

The typology was developed over more than two years, with an extensive development and review process initiated and co-ordinated by the IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management.