In Memoriam
Kathy MacKinnon (1948-2023)
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It is with immense sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Dr. Kathy MacKinnon, a stalwart crusader for protected areas and of conservation globally. She passed away peacefully during the night of Saturday 18th March at hospital in the U.K. surrounded by her three sons. She is survived by her three sons and seven grandchildren.
Kathy had a legendary career in conservation and was pivotal in guiding and leading global conservation into new horizons. She received her PhD in Zoology from Oxford University and spent ten years in Indonesia working on tropical ecology research and protected areas planning and management. She worked with many international and national conservation NGOs, as well as government agencies in developing countries. For 16 years starting in 1993, Kathy was the Lead Biodiversity Specialist with the World Bank where she found ways to integrate conservation outcomes with economic development. At the Bank, she pioneered the effort to mainstream biodiversity into the Bank’s operations using Global Environment Facility (GEF) funding. In that role, she also helped launch the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund (CEPF) and supported countless Bank-led GEF projects, resulting in the protection of millions of hectares of vital ecosystems across the world.
She was the author of over 100 scientific books and publications, including recent books that promote protected areas as proven natural climate solutions. In 2007, she was awarded the Distinguished Service Award of the Society of Conservation Biology and in 2018, she was awarded the Midori Prize for Biodiversity.
Prominent in many international forums for protected areas, Kathy first served as Deputy Chair of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), she then served two terms as Chair until 2021. She was also a dedicated member of the World Protected Areas Leadership Forum.
She was a constant member of IUCN’s many delegations to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Working Group implementing the Programme of Work on Protected Areas, the implementation of the far-reaching Target 11 on Protected Areas, and the negotiations towards the new 30×30 Target of the Global Biodiversity Framework. She became Chair of the Target 11 Partnership, working closely with the CBD to spur efforts to achieve all elements of the Target. During this time, she was also very active in the many WCPA Specialist Groups and Task Forces that have defined international nature conservation policy and practice. In particular, she championed the linkages between protected areas and climate change adaptation and mitigation and led the process for defining “other effective area-based conservation measures” (OECMs). In this role, she was particularly dedicated to ensuring the WCPA produced high-quality guidance on many topics related to the governance and management of protected areas. She recently co-chaired the International Steering Committees for the Inaugural IUCN African Protected Areas Congress in Kigali and the second Asia Parks Congress.
Fearless and objective, she also served on the Independent Panel of Experts that reviewed and assessed allegations of human rights abuses in and around protected areas and last year chaired the science committee for the Biodiversa+ Initiative. With all of this, she still found time to mentor many up-and-coming conservationists worldwide.
Of the many people who will remember Kathy for her impact on conservation, many more will remember her for her impact on their lives and their careers. Kathy took her role as a mentor seriously, always on the look out for new talent, always willing to put in the time to help guide young minds and aspiring nature enthusiasts. She inspired park rangers and policy wonks, conservation biologists and bureaucrats. She cared about biodiversity as well as the people who could help steward it for future generations. There is an entire generation of conservationists across the world who owe their start to Kathy and will miss her greatly.
Kathy had a wicked smile and a wonderful sense of humour. She was a dedicated and courageous leader and a dear friend to many. Around our planet, Kathy will always be recognized as a passionate, tireless champion for nature conservation, and an inspiration.
In her words, “Protected areas of many kinds not only give sanctuary to the wonder of 4.5 billion years of evolution but, in holding species and ecosystems, they protect the fundamental underpinning of human livelihoods, economies and wellbeing. They are a key tool in maintaining the sustainability of life on Earth and in combatting the ravages of climate change.”
Karen Richardson, Charles Di Leva, Kathy Mikitin and Valerie Hickey
