WCPA Update

February 2008

Welcome to WCPA’s Monthly Web Update

IUCN’s Programme on Protected Areas (PPA) is glad to update WCPA members with the latest protected area and IUCN news.

Protected Areas News

• Are Protected Areas Really contributing to Biodiversity Conservation?
• Governance as key for effective and equitable systems of protected areas
• Connect the parks to fight climate change - IUCN
• Indigenous Conservation Territory: A new option for governance of protected areas
  
  

The World Conservation Union plays an active role in the development and the implementation of the CBD Programme of Work on Protected Areas (PoWPA). This innovative Programme reflected and included many of the key recommendations from the IUCN 2003 World Parks Congress.

To address these recommendations and debate on how to strengthen the implementation of the CBD, the Second Meeting of the Ad Hoc Open Ended Working Group on Protected Areas takes place in Rome from February 11th-15th, 2008. This meeting provides an important platform for the participating countries to identify real challenges and constraints and practical ways and means to address challenges for enhancing the process.

Many targets within the PoWPA have shown progress towards their implementation. However there have been obstacles limiting its effective implementation, including the lack of adequate and sustainable finance, limited awareness among decision and policy makers, the need of improved capacity of those involved in PA Management, which will be discussed during the Meeting. The IUCN’s delegation focuses on promoting practical recommendations to Parties of the Convention and key partners to ensure that the CBD/PoWPA can effectively contributes to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

For further information: http://www.cbd.int

The WCPA has, on more than one occasion (WPC 2003, WCC 2004, SC meetings) expressed its commitment to transforming and empowering its membership for improved involvement and role for young professionals.  After all, the young are the future of the commission and the broad and evolving field of protected area conservation.  

The WCPA has identified a number of areas in which it will address this need, the increase of young professional (under 35yrs) membership and a number of initiatives aimed at enhancing capacity and recognizing excellence (scholarships, awards etc.).  They have also outlined an advisory function in delivering on this interest (See attached working group Terms of Reference).  However, it has become clear that in order to fulfill the potential of this group and the window provided by WCPA, more voices and dialogue is needed.  Thus, we are inviting members with young professional, capacity building or transformation-related interests, capacity, insight or experience to come forward and join us in a dialogue on how best to ensure that the impact and institutional memory of the WCPA is carried into the future. For the time being, we are interested in casting as wide a net as possible to discuss the best means to do so, but are also ultimately hoping to populate the working group in the longer term.    

Please contact Kristy Faccer (kristy.faccer@iucn.org) and Cassie Wright (cassiewright@alphalink.com.au) if you need any further information, would like to join such a discussion or to offer any suggestions that you might have. We look forward to hearing from you.

Monitoring missions taking place in the next two months are:

• Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, India
• Keoladeo National Park, India
• Lorentz National Park, Indonesia
• Tasmanian Wilderness Australia
• Talamanca la Amistad, Panama and Costa Rica
  

The World Heritage Team would be grateful for any information on the above sites. As well as help us verify the information we receive.

Contact: josephine.langley@iucn.org

Nominations for the Young Conservation Award: The International Ranger Federation (IRF) and IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) The award aims to recognize and raise awareness of the outstanding contributions made to the management of protected areas, and leadership shown, by young conservationists Deadline: 28 April 2008. For more information: http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/youth/youthaward.html

Call for submissions for the 2008 SEED Awards for Entrepreneurship in Sustainable Development.  The call opened on the 1st February 2008 and will close on the 16th March 2008.
For more information: http://www.seedinit.org/

Call for Applications for the UNESCO – Vocations Patrimoine Co-Sponsored Fellowships for World Heritage Site Managers
http://whc.unesco.org/en/news/408

DVD The Thin Green Line available now in 4 languages English – French – Spanish - Romanian
Buy the DVD - all profits go to rangers killed in the Line of Duty and other important ranger/conservation projects.

For more information and to buy a DVD visit the Thin Green Line website at http://www.thingreenline.info/newsfront

New Publications

Management Effectiveness evaluation in protected areas - a global study
http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/pubs/mgteffectpdfs/evaluationpas08.pdf

Protected Landscapes and Agrobiodiversity Values
http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/pubs/pdfs/Agrobiodiv.pdf

Implementing the CBD POWPA Parks magazine Vol 17.1
Contact Anne Erb

WCPA Steering Committee Minutes
http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/wcpa/steering%20comittee/SCMINUTES07.pdf

WCPA Membership Directory January 2008
http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/pubs/pdfs/membersdirectorjan08.pdf

WCPA Members Guide 2008
http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/pubs/pdfs/Members_guide.pdf

Protected Landscapes and Biodiversity
http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/pubs/subject/protectedlandscape.html

World Conservation Latest Issue - A Diverse and Sustainable World,
http://www.iucn.org/publications/worldconservation/2008_01/index.htm

Upcoming Events

For all upcoming protected area events and registration deadlines, please visit:
http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/events/meetings.htm

Web Site Updates

Remember to visit the Job Section of the Website, if you are looking for new challenges in conservation: http://www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/wcpa/jobs/jobs.html

The WCPA Website will be totally restructured during the coming month. The new website will be available as of 10 March. All previous links will therefore not be valid

Reminders to WCPA Members

Please note that IUCN now requires that all Commission logos be used in conjunction with the IUCN logos.  To obtain the logos, please contact delwyn.dupuis@iucn.org. 

For more information please contact delwyn.dupuis@iucn.org