WWF’s initials and famous Panda logo have become a powerful rallying point for those supporting the Organization’s mission of seeking to stop the degradation of the world’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature, by: conserving the world’s biological diversity; ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable; and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.

In terms of links between WWF and UNESCO, WWF has provided significant technical and financial support into the development of individual biosphere reserves and World Heritage sites. For example, in Cuba, environmental education and nature interpretation programmes in Ciénaga de Zapata Biosphere Reserve have been supported through links with WWF-Canada and the Canadian International Development Agency. In southern Italy, WWF-Italy has played a seminal role in the process leading to the designation of the Cilento and Vallo di Diano Biosphere Reserve and to the development of rural development projects, such as the revival and upgrading of olive oil production, through a WWF-initiative on Conservation and Development in Sparsely Populated Areas (CADISPA).

In addition, work on ethnobotany and the sustainable use of plant resources has been promoted through People and Plants, a collaborative programme of WWF, UNESCO-MAB and the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Through this initiative, inputs have been made to work on traditional ecological knowledge, community development and biodiversity conservation in a number of biosphere reserves and World Heritage sites in tropical regions, including Beni (Bolivia), Rio Plátano (Honduras), Mount Kenya (Kenya) and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and Queen Elizabeth (Rwenzori) (Uganda).