A new analysis of several major global studies of future species shifts and losses foresees inevitable continuing decline of biodiversity during the 21st century. However, it offers new hope that it could be slowed if emerging policy choices are pursued. In a publication in Science, a 23-member scientific team from nine countries, led by experts Henrique Miguel Pereira and Paul Leadley, under the auspices of DIVERSITAS, UNEP-WCMC and the secretariat of the CBD, compared results from five recent global environmental assessments and a wide range of peer-reviewed literature examining likely future changes in biodiversity.