News from the CEPA e-mail list

It's World Wetlands Day! (02/02/07)

Hello CEPA list members:

Here's a stirring message for WWD from Ramsar's Communications Officer.

"It's World Wetlands Day! As government and citizens around the world celebrate World Wetlands Day (http://ramsar.org/wwd/7/wwd2007_index.htm) on or around 2 February, Ramsar Secretariat staff are helping out in various places:

Peter Bridgewater, Secretary General, is participating in WWD celebrations and workshop on the Wetland Ambassador Action programme, sponsored by the State Forestry Administration and WWF, Beijing, China, 2 February.

Tobias Salathé and Dorothea August, Senior and Assistant Advisors for Europe, are participating a joint WWD celebration at the Lac du Bourget Ramsar site in France, 1-2 February, sponsored by the Conservatoire du patrimoine naturel de la Savoie and the Groupe d'étude et de gestion de la Grande Cariçaie, with the signing of a formal twinning agreement between the Lac du Bourget Ramsar site and the Rive sud du lac de Neuchâtel Ramsar site at Grande Cariçaie in Switzerland.

Tobias is also participating in the "conférence-débat" on the status of Lake Geneva/Lac Léman fisheries and celebration of the Ramsar anniversary, 3 February, Musée du Léman, Nyon, Switzerland.

Margarita Astrálaga, Senior Advisor for the Americas, is participating in WWD activities on 2 February in the Nickerie District of Suriname, and visiting the Ramsar site and other wetlands on the surrounding days.

Sandra Hails, CEPA Programme Officer, participated in early World Wetlands Day celebrations at the Hong Kong Wetland Park, 27 January 2007. (Great photos of cute kids dressed as wetlands, http://ramsar.org/wwd/7/wwd2007_rpts_china_hongkong.htm)

Abou Bamba, Senior Advisor for Africa, is delivering a talk at WWD celebrations in Mauritius, sponsored by the Ministry of Agro-Industry and Fisheries, 5-6 February 2007.

Lei Guangchun, Senior Advisor for the Asia/Pacific, is attending WWD celebrations in Ramsar, Iran, at the Ramsar Regional Center for Training and Research in Western and Central Asia, as well as a workshop on an institutional strategic plan involving numerous Ramsar Parties from the region.

Ramsar regional assistants Dorothea August, Mila Llorens, Evelyn Moloko, Lucia Scodanibbio, and Pragati Tuladhar are participating in the city of Geneva, Switzerland's WWD celebrations on the Jetée des Pâquis, Sunday, 4 February.

New Ramsar sites named for World Wetlands Day.
France has designated the Mares temporaires de Tre Padule de Suartone, a collection of four temporary pools, on the island of Corsica. Gambia has designated the Tanbi Wetland Complex, an outstanding mangrove site at the mouth of the River Gambia. And Gabon has named three new sites: the Parc National Akanda, the Parc National Pongara, and a site called the "Site Ramsar des Monts Birougou". Bosnia and Herzegovina has designated Bardaca Wetland (Bardaca-mocvarni kompleks) on 2 February as well, with a site description to follow soon. For more information on the rest of these new sites, see the links on the WWD 2007 Reports page.

Other WWD activities reported.
In the coming weeks we will be posting reports of other WWD activities as we receive them, but a good beginning has been made on the Reports page, http://ramsar.org/wwd/7/wwd2007_reports.htm.

You, too.
If you or your friends are doing something for WWD 2007, please do let us know about it (wwd@ramsar.org)."

With 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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