Reporting progress on internationally designated sites: the periodic review of biosphere reserves

For sites designated within international networks, reporting processes have been established to ensure that these sites continue to exhibit their special characteristics and contribute to the goals of their respective network. One such network is the World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR), composed of sites designated under UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere programme. This paper summarises the evolution of the concept and the realities of biosphere reserves since 1976; describes the introduction of the Statutory Framework for the WNBR, which formalised the concept and introduced a periodic review process to provide oversight of its implementation; evaluates the extent to which, since 1996, this process has been successful in achieving its aims; discusses changes which have been proposed and implemented; and provides suggestions for future action.