Annual Review 2025
Published on:
2025 was a year of milestone achievements for Wetlands International. We saw a growing global recognition of the central role of healthy wetlands in tackling the greatest challenges of our era: water and food security, climate change, nature loss and sustainable development; and real signs of hope for the future of our irreplaceable freshwater and coastal ecosystems.
The Source delves deeper into our key achievements in 2025 covering:
- Mangrove Breakthrough: Brazil and Mexico endorsed the Breakthrough along with another ten governments at the state and municipal level. Together with our Global Mangrove Alliance partners, we published a series of regional reports for Asia, the Americas and West-Africa, which identified actionable opportunities, local partnerships, and funding strategies.
- Freshwater Challenge: Critical progress in 2025 included the successful development of a US$5 million Global Environment Facility proposal, creating concrete implementation pathways in countries such as Brazil and Tanzania, as well as the launch of the Business Supporter Programme, which brought major companies, including GSK, Reckitt, EDEKA and IKEA into the initiative.
- Peatland Breakthrough: Working with a group of partners, we established a core team, defined global targets for peatlands, and engaged initial champion countries – Peru, Uganda and Germany. Showcased at Ramsar COP15, the Peatland Breakthrough was officially presented during Climate COP 30, opening an endorsement process to engage governments, finance, philanthropy and business – and pave the way for its full launch in 2026.
- Wetland restoration on the ground: Restoration work continued on the ground through Ecological Mangrove Restoration in places like Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, and Indonesia; through peatland restoration in Mongolia and Peru; paludiculture in countries across Europe.
- Influencing Global Agendas: Wetlands were centre-stage at events from the Wetlands COP to the UN Oceans Conference and IUCN Congress.
- Data and knowledge: Practical tools and knowledge products like Global Mangrove Watch, the International Waterbird Census, the Waterbird Population Portal, the 4 Returns Framework, best practice guides helped bring data-driven insights to conservation and restoration.
