A protected or conserved area that reaches the IUCN Green List Standard is certified and recognised as achieving ongoing results for people and nature in a fair and effective way. Green List Sustainability Standard provides a global benchmark  for how to meet the environmental challenges of the 21st century.

Any site can join, and work its way towards achieving verified success, and then maintain the Standard or further improve .

Any protected and conserved area that gains ‘Green List’ status demonstrates:

• Respect: for the local community through fair and meaningful engagement of rights-holders and stakeholders
• Design: planning that identifies the needs to secure  the important values of the area
• Effective management: monitoring of the status of these important values
• Successful conservation results: for nature and for people
• Clear contribution: to climate change responses, health and well-being and other challenges.

As of June 2022, this includes 61 Green Listed sites globally, of which around 1 out of every 7 are also World Heritage sites.

Currently green list host over 600 protected and conserved areas that are engaged in the IUCN Green List community (approximate numbers of formally and informally registered sites and networks of sites).