Royal Commission for Al-Ula has participated in the World Conservation Congress, which is being held in Marseille, France, as part of the Commission's targets to support and empower reserves and natural heritage through the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Green List of Protected and Conserved Areas, in addition to supporting the implementation of management and restoration of wildlife. The Commission, in this regard, signed a cooperation agreement with IUCN, where it was co-signed by Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan, Governor of the Commission, and IUCN Director General Dr. Bruno Oberle. The agreement enhances the Commission's vision in protecting natural elements and restoring the ecological balance in Al-Ula Governorate in a way that would enhance the status of Al-Ula as one of the natural archeological and cultural destinations globally. The Commission's vision of restoring ecological balance accords with the Saudi Green Initiative through allocating 80% of the total area of Al-Ula as nature reserves and rehabilitating 65,000 hectares of damages lands and restoring the green cover through planting more than 200 kinds of local trees and three million other trees. The agreement includes developing educational initiatives and building capacities on preserving and sustainable management of natural resources, building capacities in the field of tourist development, in addition to hosting meetings for international experts and IUCN committee members.
