News from the CEPA e-mail list
"Talking Biodiversity" and a participatory resource kit (16/11/04)
Good Morning All:
Two downloads that will be of interest to list members.
The first, "Talking Biodiversity: Getting the message across", is part of an RSPB project which has explored different approaches and ideas that could help biodiversity specialists strengthen their communication strategies. For this publication, RSPB invited five individuals to present their personal perspectives: a inspiring writer who coordinates the activities of a community-based organization in the Caribbean; a London-based journalist writing on environmental matters and former opinion editor of New Scientist magazine; an environmental activist of Maori descent; a US-based international policy analyst who focuses on issues relating to international biodiversity policy, invasive species, and trade-environment issues; and a Canadian international environmental lawyer. Their articles highlight a broad range of issues and are well worth a read to help us think again about what we communicate and how we communicate it. This publication can be downloaded in PDF format here www.ramsar.org/outreach_materials_talkingbiodiversity.pdf.
The South Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) has recently produced "Collaborating for Sustainability: A Resource Kit for Facilitators of Participatory Natural Resource Management in the Pacific". This resource kit is intended to support people working in this field whether they are:
A project manager who is overseeing project planning, doing actual facilitation work with stakeholders (e.g. running meetings and workshops), or coordinating facilitation work by other project staff and supporting them in briefing or training sessions. Or A person who is actively involved in facilitating discussions with stakeholders in a project (a 'facilitator').
The authors note that although a wide variety of manuals, resource kits and guides are available to support participatory planning processes as well as an understanding of the socio-economic dimensions of participatory natural resource management (NRM), it has been difficult to find one 'manual' that covers the range of areas that project managers and facilitators working in participatory NRM in the Pacific region need to know about: the key social and cultural issues to be considered in planning and designing participatory NRM projects, methods for socio-economic assessment, and tools and skills in the management and administration of externally funded projects. This kit aims to fill this gap.
You can download the kit from the SPREP/IWC Web site either as one PDF file (2.3 MB) or as much smaller individual Modules here: www.sprep.org.ws/iwp/Resources_Handbook.htm.
Best wishes, Sandra Hails, Ramsar Secretariat
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Sandra Hails, CEPA Programme Officer
Ramsar Convention Secretariat
Rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland
Tel: +41 22 999 0176; Fax: +41 22 999 0169
E-mail: hails@ramsar.org
Web Site: http://ramsar.org
CEPA mini-Web site: http://ramsar.org/outreach_index.htm
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