Socially informed conservation priorities in Vietnam reveal major overlaps between biodiversity protection and human needs

Biodiversity continues to decline despite the rapid expansion of conservation areas globally. This contradiction raises concerns over whether expanding conservation area coverage to 30% of the Earth’s surface by 2030 will lead to real gains for biodiversity. Further, many conservation prioritization analyses still omit social dimensions, failing to account for who would be impacted by different spatial patterns of conservation area expansion. Here, we present a socially-informed conservation planning framework and demonstrate its application in Vietnam — a country in the Indo-Burma global biodiversity hotspot undergoing rapid socio-economic transformation. Using publicly available ecological and socio-economic data, we identify priority areas for conservation and highlight biodiversity–poverty hotspots. We find that approximately 83% of highly irreplaceable areas remain unprotected. Critically, 92% of these areas coincide geographically with areas of high human development needs, highlighting areas of potential conflicts between conservation and local socio-economic development objectives. This overlap demonstrates the importance of prioritizing equitable conservation measures that can deliver both social and ecological benefits. Beyond Vietnam, this study offers a transferable approach for biodiversity-rich nations striving to achieve both conservation and development goals.