Beyond area: Evaluating Australia's contribution to Aichi Target 11 and implications for 30 × 30

Abstract

Australia has set commitments to address its biodiversity crisis, with expanding area-based conservation forming a key part of its strategy, aligned with the nation's commitments of “30 × 30” in accordance with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF). Moving forward with these goals requires a picture of how far we have come. However, there is limited understanding of how advancements in Australia's National Reserve System (NRS) have contributed to meeting previous global commitments, specifically the 2010–2020 Aichi Targets under the Convention on Biological Diversity. Here, we assess the expansion of Australia's land-based protected area network between 2010 and 2022 and t..