The Ramsar Bulletin Board, 2 April 2007

Headline story. Central Posavina Stakeholder Committee for River Basin Management. The 17th anniversary of the publication of the decree which created Croatia's Lonjkso Polje Nature Park and Ramsar site, on 20 March 2007, was the occasion to launch the Ramsar Handbook on "River basin management" in a bilingual Croatian-English version. Assistant Minister Zoran Šikic presented this tool to the 46 participants in the meeting of the Central Posavina Stakeholder Committee for River Basin Management, underlining that "this was an important step in nature conservation policy". They gathered in the newly restored seminar house of the Nature Park in the traditional village Krapje along the flood banks of the Sava river. Ramsar's Tobias Salathé explains the background and demonstrates why "this participatory process, started in the Central Posavina region, should become a model for the entire Sava river basin". [02/04/07]

Announcement.Management plans for Ramsar sites in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) - a contribution to the CBD Programme of Work on Protected Areas,18-22 October 2007. Organisers: German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, Ramsar Secretariat. Target group: Ramsar site managers and staff as well as Ramsar national focal points of CEE and CIS countries. "In many countries of CEE and the CIS, the inscription of wetlands under the Ramsar Convention is an important contribution to nature conservation. At the same time, a high responsibility for the state party is implied by the increased international reputation gained by the designation as Ramsar site. State parties become responsible for the effective management of these sites. The development and application of management plans are an important means to ensure the protection of sites for present and future generations. This seminar aims at: - assisting Ramsar sites with the preparation of management plans by creating skills and understanding of the preparation of management plans for Ramsar sites - training Ramsar sites with the implementation of management plans in practice (e.g. how to deal with participation). Information and registration: andrea.burmester@bfn-vilm.de." [from IUCN South-Eastern European e-Bulletin, no.12, March 2007]. [02/04/07]

Headline story.International Conference on Implementation of Integrated Management in the Ili-Balkhash Basin.At the invitation of the European Commission and Ministry of Environmental Protection of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Ramsar's Senior Advisor for the Asia/Pacific, Dr Lei Guangchun, participated in a transboundary river management meeting from 6 to 7 March 2007 in Almaty, Kazakhstan. More than 70 participants discussed issues and perspectives of development of the Ili-Balkhash Basin. Here is a brief report of the meeting. [02/04/07]

Headline story.Transboundary Workshop in Djerdap NP. Djerdap/Donji Milanovac, Serbia, 22 February 2007: A joint workshop was carried out on 22 February 2007 for the preparation of a project proposal "Capacity Building for Managing Irongate Gorge as Future Cross-border Ramsar Site" by Romanian and Serbian representatives held in the head office of "National Park Djerdap". The workshop was attended by representatives from Romania, such as the Nature Park "Portile de Fier", Axxa International Tour Operator and the Romanian part of the Hydroelectric Power Station "Djerdap I", as well as by representatives from Serbia, such as the Ministry of Science and Environmental Protection, Ecolibri Bionet - Agency for Biodiversity Conservation, "TOOM" - Touristic Organization of Majdanpek Municipality, Meta MC Agency for Consulting and Management and not least the representatives of the "National Park Djerdap". During the workshop, the following themes were elaborated: analysis of project participants, analysis of problems, analysis of aims, project implementation, analysis of risks and presumptions. The workshop was very successful and both sides have made conclusions implemented in the project proposal. For more information, please contact Dejan Pavlovic, M.Sc.El. npdjerdap@hotmail.com. [from IUCN South-Eastern European e-Bulletin, no.12, March 2007]. [30/03/07]

Who's Where?

For more old Ramsar Secretariat travel news, see also 'Who Was Where', 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007

Yesterday's News!

Science support officer for the Ramsar Secretariat. The Secretariat is pleased to announce that Dr. Edgar Kaeslin from Switzerland has been selected to the new position of Scientific and Technical Support Officer. The position has been created in order to provide enhanced scientific and technical capacity in the Secretariat, including in particular support to the work of the Scientific and Technical Review Panel (STRP), the Convention's subsidiary body charged with preparing scientific and technical reports as well as guidelines for the implementation of the Convention. Details on Edgar's background can be found here. [29/03/07]

Announcement. WI's Wetlands and Poverty Reduction Project, training of trainers. "Wetlands International on behalf of the WPRP African Training Board announces the call for application to two training opportunities within its Wetlands and Poverty Reduction Project funded by the Netherlands Foreign Affairs Ministry (DGIS). These training courses were developed in collaboration with various partners such as Wageningen International, UNESCO-IHE, Oxfam America, Kenya Wildlife Service Institute, Foundation for Sustainable Development, Ghana Environmental Protection Agency, Uganda Wetlands Inspection Division and Uganda Wildlife Education Centre through a series of stakeholder consultations and have further undergone processes to ensure their relevance to local contexts." The courses are: Wetlands and Poverty Reduction (Francophone) Training of Trainers, 4-25 May 2007, Thies, Senegal, and Wetlands and Poverty Reduction (Anglophone) Training, 22 April - 5 May 2007. Details and application forms are here. [29/03/07]

From the Wetlands Forum.Birds Korea's update on migratory bird monitoring. "Satellite tracking has again proved the impossible: the migration of eastern Bar-tailed Godwits Limosalapponica baueri. In the past few years, researchers in Alaska (coordinated by Dr. Bob Gill, US Geological Survey) and in New Zealand (coordinated by Dr. Phil Battley, Massey University New Zealand, and SSMP co-manager) have teamed up to track the migration of Alaskan-breeding Bar-tailed Godwits, a pigeon-sized shorebird, to their non-breeding areas - following their direct flights across open ocean all the way from Alaska to Australasia!" Here's the brief report from Nial Moores of Birds Korea. [29/03/07]

IWMI's discussion forum on linking wetlands conservation with poverty reduction. "As part of a study IWMI is conducting for Wetlands International (WI) on Lessons in linking wetlands conservation with poverty reduction, we will be holding an e-forum on the subject from 2-18 April 2007. The attached document provides the background. We hope you will see this as an opportunity to share the knowledge gained from your own experiences with the broader conservation and development communities. Your contributions will be combined with several case studies we are conducting on the same subject, and synthesized into a report to highlight emerging lessons and perspectives on wetland conservation and poverty reduction." -- Sanjiv de Silva, Programme Officer, International Water Management Institute. [28/03/07]

Guatemala names 7th Ramsar site. The Secretariat is pleased to announce that the government of Guatemala has designated its seventh Wetland of International Importance, as of World Water Day, 22 March 2007. According to the summary of the Ramsar Information Sheet data prepared by Ramsar's Assistant Advisor for the Americas, Ms Mila Llorens, the Reserva de Usos Múltiples Río Sarstún (35,202 hectares, 15°51'N 088°58'W) is part of the Guatemalan System of Protected Areas and is located along the southern border with Belize, adjacent to the Amatique Bay. The reserve is formed by a series of wetlands, ranging from continental and coastal to artificial. It has a transboundary character, since it acts as a buffer zone for the wetland of the Sarstoon-Temash Ramsar site in Belize. It is an important stop-over and breeding site for migratory waterbirds, including several flagship species. It also assists in the regulation of the local microclimate and promotes other hydrological processes, including aquifer recharge. It possesses the remains of the Caribbean Biological Corridor ecosystems and karstic wetlands that have unique characteristics. Endangered species such as the manatee (Trichechus manatus), the river turtle (Dermatemys mawii), the tapir (Tapirus bairdii) and the howler monkey (Allouata pigra) are present in the site. The main habitat type is predominantly mangrove forests, including white, red, and black mangrove, forming the second largest system of mangroves in the Caribbean coast of Guatemala. Negative factors affecting the site are the exploitation of precious woods, hunting, agriculture and livestock grazing.

Guatemala now has seven Ramsar sites covering a surface area of 628,592 hectares - the Convention's 154 Parties now have 1,651 sites covering 149,681,555 hectares. [27/03/07]

How much is your Ramsar site changing? "This is the question that the Tour du Valat Biological Station investigated in 2006 for the Camargue (Rhône delta), the first Ramsar site to be designated in France. . . . A collective endeavour, the " Camargue Observatory ", was launched in 2001 by six key technical and land-managing bodies located in the delta. Within this framework, the compilation of this data was launched in 2006. The first thematic synthesis has just been put online." Christian Perennou, Project Leader at the Station Biologique de la Tour du Valat, provides further details and a link. [27/03/07]

Anuncio.El Curso Internacional sobre Evaluación de Impacto Ambiental (EIA) y Evaluación Ambiental Estratégica (EAE) para Manejo de Humedales es un curso intensivo de 17 días (Octubre 1 al 17 de 2007) que se dictará en Ciudad de Panamá, como parte del Programa Regional de Capacitación sobre Humedales para el Hemisferio Occidental. Este curso ha sido diseñado por Ramsar-CREHO para los tomadores de decisiones y funcionarios de nivel medio, del sector gubernamental, privado, organizaciones no gubernamentales, organismos internacionales, sean de nivel profesional o técnico que se desempeñan en actividades o funciones relacionadas con humedales. Màs (PDF). [26/03/07]

Announcement.The International Course on Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SES) for Wetlands Management is an intensive seventeen-day course (1-17 October 2007) to be imparted in Panama City as part of the Regional Training Program for Wetlands in the Western Hemisphere. This course has been designed by Ramsar-CREHO for decision-makers and mid-level officials from governmental and non-governmental organizations, the private sector and international agencies, either of a professional or technical level, who are involved in wetlands-related activities. The language of the course will be Spanish. Details here (PDF).

Now available.Twinning of MedWet with SPNL and RSCN for capacity building. "Information on a new MedWet project "Twinning of MedWet with SPNL and RSCN for capacity building" is now available online on MedWet's Web site. Led by the MedWet Secretariat and implemented in partnership with SPNL - Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon and the The Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature -- Jordan, it aims to transfer expertise related to EU policies and directives and the MedWet Initiative from MedWet towards the targeted NGOs to enhance their capacity and effectiveness in conservation. Launched in January 2007 the project is planned to be completed in December 2007 and is financed by the European Commission -- DG Environment. You can read more on this project here." -- Sofia Spirou, Communications Officer, MedWet Secretariat. [23/03/07]

From the Wetlands Forum.OKACOM seeks Executive Secretary. "Dear Ramsar Forum members, Please find attached the advert (PDF) for the post of Executive Secretary for the Permanent Okavango River Basin Water Commission (OKACOM) Secretariat / ANUNCIO DE VAGA: Secretario Para o Secretariado da OKACOM. I wondered if this was of any interest to any of you, especially those from lusophone countries. Please contact OKACOM or go to www.okacom.org for more details." -- Dr Eliot Taylor, MIEEM, Senior Consultant (Freshwater Ecology), ATKINS Water and Environment. [23/03/07]

Message for World Water Day. The 22nd of March is the UN's World Water Day, with the theme of "Coping with scarcity", and Secretary General, Peter Bridgewater, has a message for the wetlands public on this occasion, stressing the interrelationships between the importance of water for people and for wetlands. "In joining with other actors in celebrating World Water Day 2007," he says, "let us make sure the consequences of shortage and scarcity for wetlands are given prominence alongside scarcity for people." Here is his brief message. [21/03/07]

UNFCCC workshop on reducing emissions from deforestation. "Avoiding loss of forests and forest degradation, particularly in the tropics, is one of the largest challenges for developing countries around the world [and] deforestation and land-use change constitute large sources of greenhouse gases on a global scale. Between 7 and 9 March 2007, 140 delegates from 58 UNFCCC Parties and international organizations met in Cairns, Australia, to discuss ways and means to reduce emissions from deforestation in developing countries." The Ramsar Secretary General reports on the meeting. [21/03/07]

Climate Change conference in Western Australia. The Conservation Council of Western Australia celebrated its 40th anniversary with a conference entitled Conservation in a Changing Climate, bringing the Western Australian conservation community together with local, national and international experts in the field. Discussions on three pressing environmental issues to be faced in the future, namely; climate change, water and biodiversity, were held in Perth on 17 March 2007, and the Ramsar Secretary General gave a keynote address on "Water, wetlands and climate change - the eternal triangle". A key aim of the conference was to create a new list of conservation priorities for WA following the first Conservation 'Bill of Rights' created by the Council 40 years ago. The conference heard the role of the linkages between the availability of water, the key role of wetlands in Western Australia's landscape, and the need for biodiversity conservation in the face of climate changes which threaten to change the water balances throughout the state of Western Australia. This conference was held with the background of increased attention in Australia to the role of water and wetlands in the landscape, and a recent report by the Auditor General of Western Australia into the management of Ramsar sites in that state. [21/03/07]

Edinburgh launch of Waterbirds around the world. "Launched today in Edinburgh, Scotland (and in the Hague in the Netherlands last week), Waterbirds around the world gives a useful overview of the current status of the world’s waterbirds and documents examples of best practice from successful conservation actions taken in many countries. The publication is an impressive tome for policy makers and on-the-gound wetland conservationists but is also worthy of attention from the world of wetland CEPA." Sandra Hails reviews the new book for the CEPA mailing list from the communications and public awareness point of view. [19/03/07]

Documental: Corredor de Vida. El documental "Corredor de Vida" (WFF/03/UY/1) es una herramienta audiovisual creada por ECOVIVIR Productora y organizaciones asociadas para dar a conocer a la población algunos de los principales humedales de Sudamérica, haciendo énfasis en un corredor que comparten Paraguay, Argentina y Uruguay. El principal objetivo del proyecto fue promover una mayor conciencia sobre los valores e importancia de estos ecosistemas, y la necesidad de utilizarlos en forma racional. Como parte de la estrategia de difusión del documental éste fue difundido por canales de televisión en varios países durante la celebración del Día Mundial de los Humedales el 2 de febrero de 2004, y también se ha empezado a difundir en instituciones educativas. [15/03/07]

The documentary Corredor de Vida: Lifeline (WFF/03/UY/1) is a tool created by ECOVIVIR Productions (Uruguay) in collaboration with other organizations to raise awareness of the importance and values of wetland ecosystems in South America, and the need to use them wisely. To do this, Lifeline illustrated a transboundary wetland extending over Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, highlighting their interconnectedness. The documentary has been shown in several television channels in all three countries and was broadcast on the 2nd of February, 2004 to celebrate World Wetlands Day in the region. It has subsequently received several prizes.

Now online: MedWet project Dialogue on Water in the Middle East and North African (MENA) Region. "Now available on the website of MedWet is information on the new MedWet project titled Dialogue on Water in the Middle East and North African (MENA) Region. Implementedin the Menasra sub-basin, Oued Sebou, Morocco, and Al Azraq basin, Jordan, the project aims to create a dialogue process around the two wetland sites leading to a Contrat de Nappe between the water users in Morocco and a local action plan for Al Azraq to be presented at the national level in Jordan.The Menasra dialogue is also perceived as a demonstration project within the framework of the Water National Debate undertaken simultaneously. Al Azraq dialogue is also perceived as a national issue by reason of its strategic importance for the water supply of the capital city of Amman, Jordan. The project is funded by INWENT (German Cooperation). Follow the link to view information on this project." -- Sofia Spirou, Communications Officer, MedWet Secretariat. [13/03/07]

Launch of Waterbirds Around the World. A major new publication on the status of the world's waterbirds was welcomed today by Ramsar's Deputy Secretary General Dr Nick Davidson at its launch by the Dutch and UK Environment Ministers in The Hague, Netherlands. The work to publish Waterbirds around the world commenced at the Global Flyways Conference in Edinburgh in April 2004. It is a landmark assessment: comprising 264 papers and reviews relating to 614 waterbird species from 162 countries. It has new data on 170 globally and near-threatened species and their habitats. Its 960 pages contain the work of 452 authors from 59 countries, and gives a telling insight into the current status of the world's waterbirds. More details are here, and today's press release from the JNCC, Scottish Natural Heritage, and Wetlands International is here. [12/03/07]

Vacancy announcement.La Tour du Valat seeks post-doc researcher. La Tour du Valat recherche un Post doc "Observatoire des zones humides méditerranéennes" pour une durée de 18 mois en vue de réaliser une synthèse sur les indicateurs intégrés disponibles les plus pertinents, et de faire des propositions applicables à la région méditerranéenne. Vous trouverez ci-joint les termes de références complet du poste à pourvoir (PDF).

Tour du Valat is looking for a post-doctorate researcher for the Mediterranean Wetlands Observatory for a period of 18 months with a view to carrying out a synthesis of the available and most relevant indicators and putting forward proposals that can be applied throughout the Mediterranean region. Please find enclosed the terms of references (PDF in French and English). [12/03/07]

Capacity building.Wetlands: Your guide to capacity building in wetland management and restoration is an 8-page brochure that has been produced by the WetCap partnership. It lists existing wetland capacity building and training programmes, courses, and online modules offered by the different WetCap and Ramsar-affiliated institutes. The brochure was developed at the request of the Advisory Board on Capacity Building for the Ramsar Convention. Over 4 pages it gives detailed information on the courses that are offered, their aims, language of delivery, duration, location, and types of participants. Another page gives a quick reference guide to all courses summarising the regional focus and duration or study load. [12/03/07]

Headline story.Four new Ramsar sites in Italy. The Ramsar Secretariat is delighted to announce that the Ministero dell'Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio e del Mare in Italy has designated four new Wetlands of International Importance, effective as of 13 December 2006. All of them are quite small, but all are extremely important for migratory and other birds and for a number of other rare and threatened species - indeed, all four are Sites of Community Importance under the EU Habitats Directive and BirdLife International "Important Bird Areas". Lago di San Giuliano (2,118 hectares) and Pantano di Pignola(172 ha) are both in the southern region of Basilicata, and Oasi del Sele-Serre Persano (174 ha) and Oasi di Castelvolturno o Variconi (195 ha) in Campania, also in the south. All are part of WWF Italy's Oasis and Reserves system and thus benefit from a number of educational, scientific, and restoration initiatives in collaboration with local authorities.

Italy now has 50 Ramsar sites (more than all but United Kingom, Mexico, Australia, and Sweden), covering a surface area of 59,796 hectares. The Convention now has 1,650 sites covering 149,646,353 hectares. Ramsar's Assistant Advisor for Europe, Monica Zavagli, has preparedbrief descriptionsof the new sites for the Annotated Ramsar List, accompanied by some photos provided by the Ministry. [09/03/07]

Zambia names four new sites and two significant extensions. The Zambia Wildlife Authority has used the occasion of World Wetlands Day, 2 February 2007, to designate four large and rich new sites for the List of Wetlands of International Importance, and to extend very significantly the areas of two more. All six sites are all or mostly parts of National Parks and Game Management Areas, and all are home to an incredible array of mammals, birds, and fish, many of them rare or vulnerable and many of them endemic. The four new Ramsar sites are Busanga Swamps (200,000 hectares, 14°05'S 025°47'E) in Northwestern Province; Luangwa Flood Plains (250,000 ha, 12°40'S 032°02'E) in Eastern Province; Mweru wa Ntipa (490,000 ha, 08°52'S 029°47'E), the lake of that name and surrounding flat wetland plains in Northern Province; and the Zambezi Floodplains (900,000 ha, 15°15'S 023°15'E) along the Zambezi River in Western Province, the second largest wetland in the country. In addition, Zambia has extended the areas of the Bangweulu Swamps and Kafue Flats Ramsar sites, both designated in 1991, to 1,100,000 and 600,500 hectares respectively. The WWF Global Freshwater Programme and WWF-Zambia were extremely helpful to the government of Zambia in the preparation of the data for these new designations and site extensions.

Zambia now has seven Ramsar sites covering a surface area of 3,800,500 hectares - the Convention has 154 Parties with 1646 Ramsar sites covering 149,642, 043 hectares. Ramsar's Assistant Advisor for Africa,Evelyn Parh Moloko, has prepared brief descriptions of the new sites for the Annotated Ramsar List. Some photos are also available here. [08/03/07]

Vacancy announcement.Ramsar seeks Regional Affairs Officer. The main focus of the work of the Regional Affairs Officer will be to provide support to the Secretariat's regional teams in their advice and guidance on national and regional implementation of the Ramsar Convention to Contracting Parties and other stakeholders. It is a full-time P1 (first-level professional) position based at the Secretariat in Gland, Switzerland, and applications are due by 10 April 2007. Here is the full announcement -- please circulate it to anyone whom you feel might be qualified and interested. [05/03/07]

World Water Day 2007. 'Coping with Water Scarcity' is the theme for World Water Day 2007, which is celebrated each year on 22 March. This year's theme highlights the increasing significance of water scarcity worldwide and the need for increased integration and cooperation to ensure sustainable, efficient and equitable management of scarce water resources, both at international and local levels. The theme was decided among all members of UN Water at the World Water Week in Stockholm in August 2006. FAO acts as coordinator, on behalf of all the UN Agencies and Programmes members of UN-Water for the celebration of World Water Day 2007. Visit: http://www.worldwaterday07.org. [05/03/07]

Bosnia & Herzegovina names second Ramsar site. The Secretariat is pleased to report that, as of World Wetlands Day, 2 February 2007, Bosnia and Herzegovina has added its second Wetland of International Importance to the Ramsar List. Bardaca Wetland (Bardaca-mocvarni kompleks) (3,500 hectares, 45°06'N 017°27'E) is an Important Bird Area situated in the floodplain of the Sava River near the border with Croatia, and about half of the Ramsar site comprises fishponds constructed since the early 20th century and further enlarged in the 1960s for irrigation purposes. The ponds, floodplain forest, meadow and swamp areas support a range of endangered species and make an important nesting and stopover site for birds. There is a rich fish fauna (e.g., Gymnocephalus schraetzer, Zingel streber) and a range of amphibians such as Salamandra salamandra, Rana dalmatina, and the pond tortoise Emys orbicularis. The hydrological regime has been interrupted by the construction of channels, pump stations, and damming of nearby streams, but presently pressure comes from permanent, intensive agricultural practices such as intensive pasturing and unwise use of fertilizers and pesticides. Aquaculture and fish production remain a primary economic pursuit. With assistance from the Ramsar Small Grants Fund, a management plan is currently under development. [02/03/07]

Vacancy announcement. Regional Ramsar Centre in Iran seeks Executive Director. The Ramsar Regional Training and Research Centre for Central and Western Asia (RRC-CWA), located in Ramsar, Islamic Republic of Iran, was endorsed by the Conference of the Parties as a "regional initiative . . . endorsed as operating within the framework of the Ramsar Convention and considered appropriate for funding in 2006-2008" (Resolution IX.7) and among other regional initiatives is receiving financial assistance from the Convention. The Centre is presently seeking to appoint a full-time Executive Director to be based in Ramsar city (the "birthplace" of the Convention on Wetlands in 1971), and all qualified people are encouraged to apply, particularly those from the Central and Western Asia region. The deadline for applications is 15 April 2007, and the full announcement can be seen here.

Nueva Consejera Regional para las Américas seleccionada en la Secretaría de Ramsar. La Secretaría se complace en anunciar que María Rivera de Colombia ha sido seleccionada como la próxima Consejera Regional para las Américas, en sustitución de Margarita Astrálaga quien ha asumido el cargo de Directora del Centro de Coordinación Mediterráneo de la UICN en Málaga, España. Durante su trayectoria María ha contribuido ampliamente a instrumentar la Convención en el Neotrópico en su cargo de Oficial Técnico del CREHO, el Centro Regional Ramsar en Panamá, y previamente también en el Ministerio de Ambiente de Colombia. María cursó la carrera de biología y química en la Universidad Libre de Colombia, así como una maestría en manejo de recursos naturales en la Universidad Nacional Ezequiel Zamora de Venezuela. También ha asistido y participado como docente en diversos cursos de entrenamiento en humedales organizados por IAC-RIZA (Países Bajos), la Agencia Sueca de Cooperación para el Desarrollo (Sida), Ducks Unlimited y más recientemente en el equipo de Síntesis de Humedales de la Evaluación de Ecosistemas del Milenio. Desde 2006, María es miembro para el Neotrópico del Grupo de Examen Científico y Técnico (GECT) de Ramsar. La Secretaría de Ramsar le da la bienvenida a María, quien iniciará funciones a mediados de mayo próximo. [28/02/07]

Now available. Standing Committee 35 report. The Ramsar Standing Committee had its 35th meeting during the week of 12-16 February 2007, and the Report of the meeting, and the English version of the Decisions, are now available (French and Spanish versions of the Decisions are now being prepared). The discussions, and the decisions, were primarily devoted to administrative and institutional matters, but of somewhat more general interest is the fact that it was agreed that the theme of both the next Conference of the Parties (COP10, Oct.-Nov. 2008 in the Republic of Korea) and the next World Wetlands Day, 2 February 2008, will be "Healthy Wetlands, Healthy People". The SC also approved the Secretariat's Work Plan for 2007 and endorsed the draft of the 4th Joint Work Programme with the CBD, approved the frameworks for the next Ramsar Strategic Plan and National Reports format, and allocated financial aid for the regional initiatives for 2007. There was also considerable discussion of the situation at particular Ramsar sites. The 36th SC meeting was set for the week of 25-29 February 2008 at the Secretariat's facilities in Switzerland. Decisions, Report. [01/03/07]

Transboundary Ramsar Site for Hungary and Slovakia. With a letter dated World Wetlands Day, 2 February 2007, Jozef Kramárik, General Director, Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic, and László Haraszthy, State Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Water, Hungary, have designated two existing Ramsar sites as a Transboundary Ramsar Site, "in order to facilitate harmonising the management of this shared wetland". The Ramsar sites in question are Ipoly Valley (Ipoly-völgy), the Hungarian part, Ramsar site no. 1093, and Poiplie, the Slovak part, Ramsar site no. 930. The writers note: "We hope that this effective and fruitful cooperation between Slovakia and Hungary in the field of nature conservation will be appreciated by the international community." The notification is here in PDF. [28/02/07]

President of Mexico announces ‘Commitments to Conservation’. On the 24 February 2007 the recently elected president Felipe Calderón announced a series of conservation initiatives to extend and strengthen the existing network of Natural Protected Areas in the country, significantly increasing the budget to that end. The announcement included Mexico’s Conservation Strategy 2007-2012; a decree to protect over 4,000 ha of mangroves near Cancún; and another one to restore the hydrology of and prevent the further extraction of groundwater from the Cuatrociénegas Ramsar site (no.734) in Coahuila. Further information is available (in Spanish) here. [27/02/07]

El Presidente de México anuncia ‘Compromisos por la Conservación’. El 24 de febrero de 2007 el recientemente electo presidente Felipe Calderón anunció una serie de iniciativas de conservación para extender y fortalecer la red de Áreas Naturales Protegidas existente en el país, incrementando su presupuesto significativamente. El anuncio coincidió con la puesta en marcha de la Estrategia de Conservación 2007 – 2012, además de incluir un decreto para la protección de más de 4,000 ha de manglares cerca de Cancún, y la aplicación de medidas para restaurar la hidrología (y detener la extracción de agua) del “Área de Protección de Flora y Fauna Cuatrociénegas” en Coahuila, sitio Ramsar no. 734. Más información aquí.

Mali's National Ramsar Committee.

Water demand management workshop. The 3rd regional workshop on "Water demand management (WDM) in the Mediterranean", organised under the aegis of the Mediterranean Commission on Sustainable Development, will take place in Saragossa (Spain), 19, 20 & 21 March 2007. Medwet is collaborating with the UNEP Blue Plan to organise the working group on water needs of ecosystems, one of the five thematic groups cotrnibuting towards the workshop. [27/02/07]

Benefits of Ramsar designation. One of the most important questions about the Ramsar Convention, and one of the most difficult to answer reliably, is what benefits can be expected to come from designating an eligible wetland as a Wetland of International Importance, or "Ramsar site". There have been case studies and anecdotes, but no recent attempts to answer the question systematically. Now we have an answer, a very positive one, and a great deal of supporting material for it, at least for the 22 Ramsar sites in the United States. A new article by Royal Gardner and Kim Diana Connolly, "The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands: Assessment of International Designations Within the United States," presents background on the Convention followed by analysis of the results of a thorough survey of the site managers and related people at all of the USA's Ramsar sites, and concludes with a number of cogent recommendations for strengthening Ramsar within the USA. In brief, the benefits that were found are discussed under the headings 1) Increased Funding Opportunities, 2) Support for Protection of the Site and Surrounding Areas, and 3) Science and Tourism, and virtually no negative effects were reported.

The article, from Environmental Law Reporter (February 2007), has been made available here in PDF format with the gracious permission of the Environmental Law Institute in Washington, D.C. Royal C Gardner is Director of the Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy at the Stetson University College of Law in Florida, USA, as well as current Chair of the US National Ramsar Committee and the North American Representative to the Convention's Scientific and Technical Review Panel. His co-author, Kim Diana Connolly, is Associate Professor of Law at the University of South Carolina School of Law and faculty member of the Vermont Law School. [22/02/07]

Now available.Report of the 4th meeting of the Himalayan High Altitude Wetlands Forum. The Regional Initiative on High Altitude Wetlands of Himalaya, led by WWF and Ramsar, aims to foster regional cooperation for the long-term conservation of these wetlands. Regional workshops provide opportunities for representatives of the national governments, scientists and NGOs to achieve conservation results at ecoregion scale. There have been three such workshops already, in Urumqi, China, in 2002; in Kathmandu, Nepal, in 2003; and in Sanya, China, in 2004. The fourth meeting of the Forum, "Capacity building for high altitude wetlands conservation and management", was held in New Delhi, India, 27-29 June 2006, with 44 participants from Bangladesh, China, India, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Pakistan and Tajikistan, as well as the Ramsar Secretariat and the international organizations IUCN, Wetlands International, WWF and ICIMOD. The participants thank the government of India and WWF India for hosting and organizing the workshop, and expressed their gratitude to WWF International and Danone Evian Group for financial support to the workshop. Here are the comprehensive report (PDF) and the conclusions and recommendations of the meeting. [22/02/07]

Feedback and suggestions are welcome to the Ramsar Convention Secretariat, Rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland (tel +41 22 999 0170, fax +41 22 999 0169, e-mail ).