The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

Wetlands Seminar for European New Independent States set for Armenia

MINISTRY OF NATURE PROTECTION OF ARMENIA
RAMSAR CONVENTION BUREAU
NGO PROFESSIONAL AND ENTREPRENEURIAL ORIENTATION UNION
LAKENET

The International Seminar
"CURRENT ISSUES OF CONSERVATION AND WISE USE
OF WETLANDS AND WETLAND BIODIVERSITY
IN THE EUROPEAN NEW INDEPENDENT STATES"
Sevan, September 15-19, 2003

INFORMATION LETTER

Dear Colleagues,
We have the pleasure to invite you to participate in the International Seminar "Current Issues of Conservation and Wise Use of Wetlands and Wetland Biodiversity in the European New Independent States"

Organizing Committee:
Simon PAPYAN, Chairman, First Deputy Minister of Nature Protection (MNP), Armenia
Karen JENDEREDJIAN, Executive Secretary, Leading Specialist, MNP, Armenia
Olga ANISIMOVA, Programme Leader, Wetland International, Russia Office, Russia
Lisa BORRE, Director, LakeNet, USA
Tatyana DANIELYAN, Head, Division of Biodiversity Conservation, MNP, Armenia
Ruzanna DAVTYAN, Head, Division of Projects, MNP, Armenia
Susanna HAKOBYAN, Board Member, NGO Professional and Entrepreneurial Orientation Union, Armenia
Gagik KIRAKOSSIAN, Chair, NGO Professional and Entrepreneurial Orientation Union, Armenia
Vasiliy KOSTYUSHIN, Project Coordinator, Wetlands International, Black Sea Office, Ukraina
Tobias SALATHE, Regional Coordinator for Europe, Ramsar Convention Bureau, Switzerland

Seminar Themes
The Seminar will highlight the importance of partnerships and cooperation in the region in relation to different aspects of wetlands and wetland biodiversity conservation and wise use. More specifically, the Seminar will focus on the following themes:

" Ramsar: synergy with other Conventions
" Wetlands and water
" Wetland issues and regional cooperation
" Regional needs and perspectives for wetland training
" Transboundary wetlands
" Development and implementation of national wetland policies
" Needs for wetland restoration and rehabilitation in the region
" Wetlands and invasive species

Seminar languages
The working languages of the Seminar will be Russian, English and Armenian. However all articles in Armenian will be provided with Russian and/or English abstracts. Simultaneous interpretation will be provided during the plenary sessions and, where important, during the group sessions.

Who can participate?
The Seminar is open to everybody who is interested in conservation, management and research of wetlands in the European NIS. Priority will be given to participants from Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, European part of Russian Federation, and Ukraine. The organizers will admit a maximum of 40 people for the event.

Concept and aims of the Seminar
The Seminar will provide an opportunity for European NIS to re-establish the lost contacts and to exchange experiences in different aspects of wetlands and wetland biodiversity conservation and wise use with a particular emphasis on regional partnership and cooperation. Participants will share organizational and scientific knowledge and experience gained at local, national and regional level. Participants will have an opportunity to discuss paths to sustainable wetland development on the background of political, social, economic, and ecological environments of the region.

Venue and date of the Seminar
The Seminar will be held in Sevan, Armenia, 15-19 September 2003.
Sevan is a small resort situated on the shore of the mountain Lake Sevan (1896 m above sea level) in the heart of the second largest Ramsar site in the region after the Volga Delta: Lake Sevan Ramsar site (489,100 ha). A tradition of wetland managers and scientists was always not to discuss wetlands only indoors but also standing inside these ecosystems. This will permit joint examination of local issues, and facilitate creation of interfaces between representatives from local communities, science and business, and policymakers at various levels of intervention. The weather in September is usually excellent: sunny and dry, average air temperatures are between 11oC at night and 17oC by day. The water temperature is around 20oC.

Seminar schedule

Sunday, 14 September - Arrival
Monday, 15 September Arrival, registration Opening and plenary session and reception
Tuesday, 16 September Workshops, plenary and group sessions
Wednesday, 17 September Workshops, plenary and group sessions
Thursday, 18 September Field excursions
Friday, 19 September Panel and closing sessions Departure
Saturday, 20 September Departure -

Participants will arrive either in the evening of Sunday, 14 September or in the morning of Monday, 15 September. The Seminar will start in the afternoon of Monday, 15 September with the opening session followed by an evening reception. The next two days of the Seminar, Tuesday, 16 September and Wednesday, 17 September will consist of plenary and group working sessions with keynotes, panel discussions, and feedback from working groups. Thursday, 18 September will be dedicated to full day field excursions, one around Lake Sevan (total 240 km, 10 hours) and the second to Ararat Valley (around 800 m above sea level, total 320 km, 12 hours), both visiting a number of different types of wetlands as well as areas of cultural heritage. On Friday, 19 September a final workshop followed by the closing session will end in the early afternoon. Participants will depart either in the evening of Friday, 19 September or early on Saturday, 20 September.

Costs and fellowships
The registration fee, which will include participation in the Seminar, Seminar documents and proceedings, excursion, reception and coffee/tea breaks is AMD 35,000 (ca. US$ 60); overnight lodging with regular meals AMD 15,000-30,000 (ca. US$ 26-51) per day per person. Limited participants from Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Russian Federation, and Ukraine will receive full or partial financial support to cover their travel, registration fee, overnight lodging and regular meals.

Deadlines for applications and abstracts
The deadline for applications and abstracts is July 31, 2003. Please, send them by e-mail to : jender@arminco.com or by regular mail to: Karen Jenderedjian, Ministry of Nature Protection
35 Moskovian St., 375002 Yerevan, Armenia. For additional information, please, call +(374)-1-531841 (from 9 a. m. till 6 p. m. Yerevan time /GMT + 4.00/; contact person: Karen Jenderedjian) or +(374)-1-568027 (from 6 p. m. till 11 p. m.; contact persons: Susanna Hakobyan and Karen Jenderedjian).

Guidelines for abstracts
Please send an electronic file in English and/or Russian in *.rtf (MS Word for Windows) format. Use font Time New Roman. Please show the Title on the fist line, the Author(s) on the second line, the Institution on the third line and Contact address and E-mail on the fourth line. Please, begin your Abstract after the empty line and limit the length of your text to 3000 characters including spaces. We encourage you to follow this format and submit the abstract as soon as possible but not later than 31 July 2003. We expect to publish an abstract booklet prior to the opening of the Seminar. The Organizing Committee assumes the right to make a decision about publication of abstracts.

APPLICATION FORM

Last name:

First name:

Sex:

Date of birth:

Nationality:

Position:

Academic degree:

Organization
/ Address:
E-mail:

Telephone/Fax:

Presentation title and
category: Oral / Poster

Importance of entry visa in Armenia: Yes / No
Importance of financial support: Yes* / No
*In case of YES, please, provide approximate travel costs

The APPLICATION FORM and the ABSTRACT of presentation should reach the Organizing Committee by 31 July 2003 by e-mail:
jender@arminco.com
or postal address:
Dr. Karen Jenderedjian
Leading Specialist
Ministry of Nature Protection,
35 Moskovian St., 375002 Yerevan, Armenia.

For additional information please, call +(374)-1-531841 (from 9 a. m. till 6 p. m. Yerevan time /GMT + 4.00/; contact person: Karen Jenderedjian) or +(374)-1-568027 (from 6 p. m. till 11 p. m.; contact persons: Susanna Hakobyan and Karen Jenderedjian).

For further information about the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, please contact the Ramsar Convention Bureau, Rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland (tel +41 22 999 0170, fax +41 22 999 0169, e-mail ramsar@ramsar.org). Posted 29 April 2003, Dwight Peck, Ramsar.