Jan 9, 2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WASHINGTON, DC — The America the Beautiful for All Coalition opposes the United States’ withdrawal from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
On January 7th, 2026 President Donald Trump withdrew the United States of America from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) by executive order. This is yet another setback in a long long list of escalating and cascading threats to nature at the hands of the Trump Administration.
The IUCN is the largest global environmental network and is instrumental in both gathering data and conducting research on biodiversity. This data and research is essential to inform international conservation agreements and policies. The IUCN brings together both governmental and non-governmental organizations. Since its inception in 1948, it has co-drafted and supported numerous international treaties including the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which regulates international trade of vulnerable animals and plants, and the World Heritage Convention, which protects cultural and natural sites that have exceptional value. The IUCN Red List serves as a globally recognized and comprehensive inventory of the status of species around the world. Over 172,000 species have been assessed and these assessments are critical for guiding conservation actions not only in the United States, but globally as well. The IUCN Green List Standard has been incredibly influential in managing protected areas, and has been foundational to the success of numerous restoration and conservation projects.
Marine scientist, President and CEO of Minorities in Shark Scientists, and co-lead of the America the Beautiful for All Coalition Policy Priorities and Campaigns Committee Jasmin Graham noted
“The United States withdrawal from the IUCN could have cascading effects in scientific research in the United States that is supported by or conducted in collaboration with the IUCN. In our oceans, the IUCN Red List assesses and monitors important fisheries species such as tunas and abalones. In our lakes, rivers and streams, the IUCN Red List provides vital information on freshwater fisheries species like sturgeon, trout and salmon. In our forests, the IUCN Red List assessments help us understand threats facing our commercially valuable trees like Ash, Birch, Alder and Hornbeam. The United States’ withdrawal from IUCN, coupled with disturbing proposals surrounding bedrock wildlife protection policies like the Endangered Species Act, indicates a dangerous trend which could lead to the degradation and possible loss of some of our most commercially, culturally and socially valuable resources.”
America the Beautiful for All Coalition Executive Director Shantha Ready Alonso said “the continued withdrawal of the United States from environmental networks, treaties and agreements erodes trust with global and domestic partners, undermines important tools of our representative democracy, and ultimately sets back our own conservation efforts.”
The America the Beautiful for All Coalition calls on its members to speak out and stand up to protect our forests, oceans, lakes, and our access to all nature has to offer. Clean air, clean water, and abundant wildlife: that’s what makes America great and healthy. In 1893, Katharine Lee Bates wrote a poem while overlooking the beautiful landscape of Pikes Peak, Colorado which would become lyrics to the song “America the Beautiful.”
“O beautiful for spacious skies.
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!”
This is the beauty she saw in our country, and this is the beauty we hope to leave behind for future generations, but we cannot do that if we continue to erode foundational infrastructure that monitors and protects that which we hold dear. Stand with us in our fight for Nature!
America the Beautiful for All Coalition
