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Media
Accreditation
Introduction
Key
Events
PA in Africa
More
information
Media Accreditation Form
Vth
IUCN WORLD PARKS CONGRESS:
2,500 DELEGATES TO CONVENE IN SEPTEMBER IN SOUTH AFRICA
With
more than 2,500 participants from some 170 countries expected
to attend, the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress will be the largest
conservation event in the wake of the World Summit on Sustainable
Development and a major global forum for protected areas held
for
the first time in Africa.
The IUCN World Parks Congress is a unique once-in-a-decade event
which provides the major global forum for setting the agenda for
protected areas. Previous Congresses have had a tremendous impact
in assisting national governments to create new protected areas,
and direct more resources towards biodiversity conservation.
Both Patrons of the Congress, former South African President and
Nobel Peace Prize winner Mr Nelson Mandela and Her Majesty Queen
Noor of Jordan strongly endorse the theme of the Congress, "Benefits
Beyond Boundaries".
Protected areas represent some of humankind's earliest efforts to
conserve the natural resources on which our survival and well-being
depend. The twentieth century was a period of unprecedented change,
escalating development and destructive impact on natural resources
but it has also seen an impressive growth in the number of protected
areas, from a mere handful in 1900, to over 44,000 covering more
than 10% of the earth's land surface.
Although protected areas have never been needed more, the threats
to these areas continue to increase. Whether as reservoirs of biological
diversity, sources of clean air and water, buffers from storms,
sinks for carbon or places to reconnect with nature, protected areas
are vitally important to safeguarding our individual and collective
futures.
The World Parks Congress will comprise seven Workshop
Streams, four
parallel Symposia and a large number of side
events. Press conferences and briefings will be organised throughout
the Congress, and media will be able to get extensive briefings
from the world's foremost experts. The Congress is also expected
to adopt 'The Durban Accord' - a succinct joint policy statement
for protected areas in the 21st century.
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Following are
key events of interest for the media as well as venues
organised for journalists:
A preview press conference, with the participation of the
IUCN Director General, Mr Achim Steiner and Chair of the World Commission
on Protected Areas, Dr Kenton Miller, will be held on Sunday 7 September
officially launching the Congress and outlining its agenda, challenges
and expected outcomes.
The Opening Ceremony on Monday 8 September will bring together
high profile dignitaries in support of protected areas and the Congress.
The Congress Patrons, Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan and Mr Nelson
Mandela will play prominent roles at the Opening Ceremony.
As part of the Congress, the 'Report Card for Protected Areas'
comprising a new 'United Nations List for Protected Areas' and 'State
of the Parks' report will be launched on Tuesday 9 September. The
report will be a qualitative publication and web based product providing
an in-depth analysis of the global status of protected areas at
the beginning of the 21st century.
Two-day field trips linked to Workshop Streams are being
planned for journalists on 14-15 September to Greater St Lucia Wetland
Park, the largest estuary system on the African continent now managed
jointly with neighbouring communities and where hippo, crocodile,
elephant, buffalo, black rhino, zebra, reedbuck and an abundant
variety of bird life can be seen; Ukhahlamba Drakensberg Park, a
World Heritage Site known for its endemic and endangered wildlife
as well as the highest concentration of San rock art in Africa;
Hluhluwe Umfolozi Park, the oldest protected areas in Africa essential
for the survival of the white and black rhinoceros; and Siyaya Coastal
Park /Richards Bay Sanctuary, which shelters a wide variety of birdlife
neighbouring with an industrialised harbour. More information on
field trip destinations is available from:
http://iucn.org/themes/wcpa/wpc2003/programme/fieldtrip.htm
A one-hour panel discussion, gathering experts on the controversial
issue of mining and protected areas, is planned on the morning of
Tuesday 16 September, followed by a statement by the International
Council on Mining and Metals. Journalists will be able to attend
and question representatives of the industry, conservation community
and indigenous peoples groups.
A wrap-up Press Conference will close the Congress and present
its conclusions on Wednesday 17 September.
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The first ever World Parks Congress held on the African continent,
the event will focus attention
on protected areas in Africa and mobilise international
support to secure their future.
Africa has an extraordinary record of achievement in establishing
protected areas with 2 million square km set aside. The continent
has also pioneered transboundary conservation and has one of the
world's largest transboundary protected areas shared by South Africa,
Zimbabwe and Mozambique, the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park.
The Congress will spur initiatives to revise and recommit to the
1968 African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural
Resources with a focus on protected areas, to launch an African
Programme on protected areas, and to establish an endowment or trust
fund legacy for protected areas in Africa. A special plenary session
on African protected areas will be conducted in the afternoon of
Tuesday 16 September.
The media will have access to various exhibitions,
press meetings and briefings, and will benefit from a media centre
equipped with phones, internet access, and workspaces. An IUCN team
will be on stand-by to facilitate media contacts and general work.
A 100 room block booking has already been organised in a Durban
Hotel for media representatives who wish to attend.
Journalists wishing to attend the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress
are invited to fill in the attached accreditation form. The form
and additional information are available from the IUCN website:
www.iucn.org/wpc2003
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For more information contact:
Xenya Cherny,
IUCN Communications, Tel: +41 22 999 0127; Xenya.Cherny@iucn.org
Virginia Tschopp,
IUCN Programme on Protected Areas, Tel: +41 22 9990161; Virginia.Tschopp@iucn.org
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Media
Accreditation form
Please fill
the entire form. Only reporters and journalists accredited to the
Vth IUCN World Parks Congress will be granted access to the Durban
International Convention Centre. Journalists who cannot attend but
wish to receive media documentation should fill the appropriate
box below. Media representatives are requested to present themselves
at least 15 minutes before each event. They will be asked to identify
themselves by means of a press card or a corresponding ID card with
a photo.
Media
Accreditation Form - Word Document - 33KB
Media
Accreditation Form - PDF Document - 371KB
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