IUCN/SSC Red List Training

Prompted by the IUCN Red List’s increasing popularity and a growing need for Red List training around the world, IUCN in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has developed the first online IUCN Red List Training Course: Assessing Species' Extinction Risk Using IUCN Red List Methodology.

Hosted on TNC’s ConservationTraining website, this course is free and open to anyone who wishes to learn more about the IUCN Red List. The course teaches everything you need to know about how to prepare high-quality Red List assessments. It is particularly useful for SSC members about to embark on red listing for the first time, or for experienced Red List Assessors who want to refresh their memory on any aspect of the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria.

Currently, the first four modules are available (covering what the IUCN Red List is, the Red List assessment process, IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, and supporting information for assessments) with a further three modules being released within the next few weeks (mapping standards, SIS, and regional Red List assessments). Towards the end of this year the course will also include an exam to test your Red List knowledge and allow you to gain a Red List Assessor certificate.

Getting started is easy:

• Go to the ConservationTraining website ( www.conservationtraining.org/ )
• If you don’t already have a user account, create a new account using the login panel. Then login to the website.
• Open the Course Catalog in the top toolbar, and select “IUCN Red List Curriculum”.
• Follow the instructions on the screen.

Completion of the course is not compulsory for Red List Assessors; you can still submit assessments for the IUCN Red List without taking the course or holding a Red List Assessor certificate. The course is simply an easy to use platform for anyone to learn how to become a Red List Assessor, or to improve and test their Red List knowledge and skills.

For more information, see the Red List Training pages on the IUCN Red List website. Or, contact Caroline Pollock in the IUCN Red List Unit (email: caroline.pollock@iucn.org).