World Database of Protected Areas

The World Database of Protected Areas provides a global reference for marine and terrestrial protected areas. The map uses public services maintained by UNEP-WCMC, beginning with a view of central Bhutan. Zoom out for regional context, or pan to another study area.

Choose Load protected areas map to open the basemap and UNEP-WCMC's protected-area vector tiles. Green polygons show the protected-area layer. Choose Load IUCN categories in this view for category colours and clickable attributes from the polygon feature service. Each feature request is confined to the visible extent and a maximum of 200 polygons; zoom in when the area contains more. Moving the map clears the category selection so its extent remains explicit.

Interpret the map

IUCN management categories describe management objectives. Read the category alongside the site's designation, legal status, reporting date and relevant national records when screening an investment or preparing fieldwork. Boundaries can overlap, and the map displays polygon records rather than a count of distinct sites. The feature popup retains the site's identifier and source attributes.

The overview and category layer come from separate provider services. The feature service metadata checked on 10 October 2026 identifies a protected-area-only view of the World Database on Protected and Conserved Areas (WDPCA), with an October 2026 citation. Its current name fields are name and name_eng. The vector service retains the name WDPA and a mutable latest endpoint. Record the selected source edition for reproducible analysis; the map provides a live exploration rather than a fixed analytical release.

The current basemap uses OpenStreetMap tiles for roads, settlements and geographic context, with visible contributor attribution. Reads follow its tile usage policy: the map requests tiles for the visible area after a reader opens it and uses normal browser caching. The CARTO style used in the original notebook remains recorded as a historical endpoint. Protected-area tiles and category features are separate UNEP-WCMC layers, with their own attribution and source attributes.

About the original discussion

The original notebook cited UNEP-WCMC and IUCN (2024), Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas, June 2024, Cambridge, UK (DOI). That citation identifies the historical discussion rather than the edition now served by a latest endpoint.

WDPA was developed jointly by UNEP and IUCN and compiled by UNEP-WCMC with governments, non-governmental organisations, academia and industry. Its protected-area information has supported biodiversity planning, national and international reporting, the UN List of Protected Areas and assessments of progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. The earlier discussion also described its use in reporting on Aichi Target 11, IPBES indicators and the Global Biodiversity Outlook. Retain the reporting framework and source date when interpreting those historical uses.

For environmental and social appraisal, connect the selected protected-area edition with project pathways, affected resource users and field evidence. The geospatial methods discussion and spatial baseline guide explain those analytical connections.