Despite its importance1,2
, microbial
life is largely absent from global
conservation frameworks3,4
.
Launched in July 2025, the Microbial Conservation Specialist
Group (MCSG) was established as a Species
Survival Commission (SSC) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature
(IUCN). The IUCN is the world’s leading
authority in environmental science and policy,
renowned for shaping conservation priorities across governments, non-governmental
organizations and international treaties. The
MCSG convenes a coalition of microbiologists,
ecologists, traditional knowledge experts
and conservation leaders to develop and
advocate for conservation tools, strategies
and policies that explicitly integrate microbiology into global biodiversity governance.
Despite the importance of microorganisms
for ecosystem function, their role has been
seen as too abstract or complex to integrate
into policy. Elevating microbial perspectives
within global conservation has required overcoming a deep-r