Contributing to China's Biodiversity Conservation: The Role of Nature Education

Abstract

Ongoing biodiversity loss has far-reaching implications for human well-being and survival. To address the accelerating rate of biodiversity loss, the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15) prioritized “Strengthening Biodiversity Publicity and Education” as a key agenda item throughout its process, both during the initial phase in Kunming, China, in 2021 and the second phase held in Montreal, Canada, in 2022. Nature education, which has emerged as a useful approach toward achieving sustainable development goals, is intrinsic to raising public awareness about the importance of biodiversity conservation. Despite many countries employing this kind of strategy, nature education was introduced relatively late in China, and its role in biodiversity conservation remains underexplored. Few studies have proposed frameworks for integrating nature education into biodiversity conservation efforts. This study aims to fill this gap by establishing a framework for biodiversity conservation in China that incorporates nature education. It also examines how nature education supports biodiversity conservation, clarifies the relationship between the two, and analyzes the current practices and challenges of nature education in China. The findings provide a reference for developing an efficient nature education system that fosters sustainable interactions between human beings and nature.

Keywords

biodiversity conservation / China / nature education / pathways / role

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2025 The Author(s). Integrative Conservation published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG).