IN FOCUS: Saxon-Bohemian Switzerland in the heart of Europe
A conservation atlas for transboundary conservation areas
Restoration of the Rio Bravo-Grande
http://iucn.org/about/work/programmes/global_policy/gpu_resources/gpu_res_recs/index.cfm
2nd IUCN World Conservation Congress, Amman, Jordan, 2000
2.41 International Ombudsman Centre for Environment and Development [Global]
4th IUCN World Conservation Congress, Barcelona, Spain, 2008
Resolution 4.042 Establishment of a Transboundary Peace Park between Honduras and Nicaragua [Site]
4.051 Indigenous Peoples and Protected Areas of La Mosquitia in Mesoamerica [Site]
4.060 The European Green Belt Initiative [Regional] [Site]
4.061 The Great Ecological Connectivity Corridor : Cantabrian Range- Pyrenees – Massif Central- Western Alps [Regional] [Site]
4.062 Enhancing Ecological Networks and Connectivity Conservation Areas [Global], [Regional]
4.065 Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Protected Areas, and Management of Transboundary Waters [Global]
4.070 Sustainable Mountain Development [Global], [Regional]
4.131 Conservation of the Western Iberian Peninsula [Regional] [Site]
4.135 Environmental Impact of Windbased Power Production in Spanish and Portuguese Mountain Areas [Site]
5th IUCN World Conservation Congress, Jeju, Republic of Korea, 2012
M-050 Establishing a forum for transboundary protected area managers
Rec-149 Transboundary ecological corridors in the Western Iberian Peninsula
Rec-152 Enlarging and connecting transboundary protected areas for the Ecological Corridor of Northeast Asia
2nd IUCN World Conservation Congress, Amman, Jordan, 2000
2.41 International Ombudsman Centre for Environment and Development [Global]
AWARE that the process of globalization poses a new generation of challenges and opportunities, but also increases the potential for environment-related conflicts;
CONSCIOUS of the fact that conservation and sustainable development can only be achieved through the participation of all stakeholders in decision-making processes and that victims of conflicts are often the disadvantaged who are least able to protect their interests or assert their rights;
ACKNOWLEDGING the initiative of the Director General to enter into an executive agreement with the Earth Council and the United Nations University for Peace, establishing, on a pilot basis, an International Ombudsman Centre to provide mechanisms for addressing such contentious issues;
NOTING that IUCN, through its members and partners, is well-positioned to assist in addressing environmental conflict at transboundary and local levels; and
FURTHER NOTING that this initiative responds to a long-perceived need for a non-adversarial, non-judicial but flexible mechanism to address current and potential conflicts pertaining to environment and development issues;
The World Conservation Congress at its 2nd Session in Amman, Jordan, 4–11 October 2000:
1. WELCOMES the announcement that an International Ombudsman Centre for the Environment and Development (OmCED) has been established on a pilot basis;
2. REQUESTS the Director General to:
(a) make contact with OmCED during the pilot phase; and
(b) present a report on the outcome of this contact in order to facilitate a decision by IUCN on its relations with Om-CED.
4th IUCN World Conservation Congress, Barcelona, Spain, 2008
http://cmsdata.iucn.org/downloads/wcc_4th_005_english.pdf
Resolution 4.042 Establishment of a Transboundary Peace Park between Honduras and Nicaragua [Site].
RECALLING that Recommendation V.15 Peace, Conflict and Protected Areas noted by the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress (Durban, 2003) recognizes that effectively managed protected areas contribute to a just peace as a fundamental precondition for the conservation of biodiversity and other natural and cultural resources;
AWARE that the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) has contributed to the Parks for Peace Initiative through its study on Transboundary Protected Areas for Peace and Co-operation, and that many states have furthered biodiversity conservation and peace by establishing peace parks;
The World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008:
3. CALLS ON the Governments of Honduras and Nicaragua to:
(a) develop cooperatively a transboundary protected area with a regional joint management system to integrate existing protected areas (La Botija Natural Protected Area and Multiple-Use Area Cerro Guanacaure in Honduras and Tepesomoto-La Patasta Reserve and National Monument Cañon de Somoto in Nicaragua) and surrounding areas, so that shared and common resources can be managed harmoniously for conservation and sustainable development;
(b) recognize and support civil society and local authorities, in accordance with Principle 10 of the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, in their efforts to organize themselves in order to have a leading role so that shared and common resources in this area can be managed harmoniously for conservation and sustainable development; and
(c) work within a multi-stakeholder participatory framework to identify common management practices that are based on the parallel laws of each nation, as well as customary laws, to facilitate capacity building and information and technology exchanges, and to identify funding opportunities and assist in the procurement of funds, in order to ensure sustainable development, natural resource conservation and peaceful resolution of conflicts in the management of the transboundary area;
In addition, the World Conservation Congress, at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008, provides the following guidance concerning implementation of the IUCN Programme 2009–2012:
4. RECOMMENDS that the Director General, in consultation with the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and other interested international organizations, support and encourage Honduras and Nicaragua, in consultation with the IUCN National Committees in those countries, to jointly manage this transboundary protected area by:
(a) providing guidance to and facilitating cooperation among stakeholders on both sides of the border;
(b) undertaking studies of natural and cultural resources in the area; and
(c) supporting inclusion of the area in the programme of work of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor.
State and agency members of the United States refrained from engaging in deliberations on this motion and took no national government position on the motion as adopted for reasons given in the U.S. General Statement on the IUCN Motions Process.
4.051 Indigenous Peoples and Protected Areas of La Mosquitia in Mesoamerica [Site].
RECALLING previous IUCN Resolutions and Recommendations that address the roles and rights of indigenous peoples:
(a) Recommendation 18.16 Recognition of the Role of Indigenous Communities adopted by the 18th IUCN General Assembly (Perth, 1990);
(b) Resolution 19.20 IUCN Action on Indigenous People and the Sustainable Use of Natural Resources, Resolution 19.23 The Importance of Community-based Approaches, Recommendation 19.21 Indigenous People and the Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and Recommendation 19.22 Indigenous People adopted by the 19th IUCN General Assembly (Buenos Aires, 1994); and
(c) Resolution 1.53 Indigenous Peoples and Protected Areas, Resolution 1.54 Indigenous Peoples and Conservation in Meso-America, Resolution 1.55 Indigenous Peoples and Forests and Resolution 1.56 Indigenous Peoples and the Andes adopted by the 1st IUCN World Conservation Congress (Montreal, 1996);
ALSO RECALLING Resolution 2.81 Mining concessions and protected areas in Mesoamerica adopted by the 2nd IUCN World Conservation Congress (Amman, 2000) and Recommendation V.24 Indigenous Peoples and Protected Areas noted at the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress (Durban,2003);
MINDFUL of the provisions of Convention 169 of the International Labour Organization (ILO) concerning indigenous and Tribal Peoples and of those of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), as well as of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (September 2007), and the Draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which guarantee the rights of indigenous peoples to self-determination, prior informed consultation and the ownership, use, management and conservation of biodiversity and natural resources of their territories;
RECALLING that IUCN, in the framework of its Initiative for Indigenous Peoples and Conservation, committed itself to establish a Mesoamerican Working Group on indigenous peoples and protected areas;
BEARING IN MIND that the indigenous territories of La Mosquitia in Honduras and Nicaragua host the largest contiguous remaining tropical rainforest area in Mesoamerica, as well as most of the protected areas of the countries concerned; and that they jointly constitute the so-called ‘core’ of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC), including the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve, designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, the Tawahka Asangni Biosphere Reserve and the Patuca National Park in Honduras, and the Bosawas Biosphere Reserve in Nicaragua;
CONCERNED by the pressures to which the indigenous territories and protected areas of La Mosquitia, which constitute the core of the MBC, are subjected, particularly the rapid escalation of uncontrolled agricultural, logging and livestock encroachment, which results in accelerated forest loss and conversion, estimated at 10,000 hectares annually in Honduras alone, with increasingly severe impacts on watersheds, wetlands and marine/coastal areas;
FURTHER CONCERNED, that these damaging impacts will further increase with agrobiofuel production, mining exploration and exploitation and construction of the Patuca III mega-dam, and that all of these activities endanger the medium- and long-term sustainability of this important transboundary system of protected areas, as well as the habitat and life of the indigenous and afrodescendant communities who have historically lived in these territories, thus violating these peoples’ rights, guaranteed by international standards;
RECALLING that the MBC core protected areas are priority sites for Mesoamerican and global conservation, pursuant to the provisions of the Central American Regional Biodiversity Convention (1992); and
RECOGNIZING the contribution received from the IUCN Regional Office for Meso-America (IUCNORMA) facilitating the holding of meetings of representatives of indigenous peoples in the Mesoamerican region, especially after the II Latin American Congress of National Parks and Other Protected Areas (Bariloche, 2007), and noting that this support and encouragement from the Union was invaluable for creating the first draft of the Regional Indigenous Agenda, and improving the organization and positioning of the Indigenous Networks of Mesoamerica;
The World Conservation Congress, at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008, provides the following guidance concerning implementation of the IUCN Programme 2009–2012:
REQUESTS the Director General, IUCN Commissions, members, Regional Councillors and particularly IUCNORMA, utilizing available resources, as well as other resources that could be raised, to work on the following:
(a) carrying out an assessment of the current status of MBC’s core protected areas, highlighting biodiversity threats and the exercise of the rights of indigenous and afro-descendant peoples;
(b) lobbying the Governments of Honduras and Nicaragua so that they respond to the findings of the assessment and contribute to the creation of short-, medium- and long-term plans to tackle these challenges;
(c) submitting the assessment report to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, and lobbying them so that UNESCO presents recommendations to Honduras and Nicaragua to safeguard the integrity of the protected areas and the rights of the indigenous and afro-descendant peoples;
(d) forming alliances with members of IUCN in the Mesoamerican Region in order to implement an action plan based on the findings of the assessment, so as to start a process aimed at reducing the advance of the agricultural frontier, as well as restoring and protecting watersheds, wetlands and forests in protected areas located on the agricultural frontiers of the MBC’s core area and other important ecosystems in the indigenous peoples’ territory;
(e) asking the Government of Honduras, in accordance with the recommendations of the World Commission on Dams and the rights of the indigenous peoples guaranteed in the ILO Convention 169 and in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, to present complete documentation on the social, environmental, economic and cultural impacts of the Patuca III mega dam project, building of which is planned to start 2009, and to consider whether it will be compatible with the CBD Akwé Kon Voluntary Guidelines;
(f) consulting the Government of Taiwan, a Province of China, as a funding body of the Patuca III mega dam project, on whether it has assessed the social, cultural, environmental and economic impacts on indigenous peoples, and on the MBC’s core protected areas;
(g) jointly formulating with IUCN members in Mesoamerica, sectoral guides for the assessment of infrastructure projects such as development of roads, dams, mining resources and hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation and the growing of agrobiofuel crops, which can compromise the integrity of natural resources, biodiversity, livelihoods and the rights of indigenous and afro-descendant peoples, ensuring the incorporation of the CBD Akwé Kon Voluntary Guidelines and other similar guidelines;
(h) creating a Mesoamerican working group of indigenous peoples along with IUCN-ORMA, as an area for dialogue, understanding, consultation and lobbying on governance issues, management categories, restitution and the specific indigenous system found in the protected areas, as well as the impacts of climate change and projects that have a negative effect on their territories and natural resources, as set out in the ILO Convention 169;
(i) implementing an appropriate internal surveillance, monitoring and assessment system on the inclusion of and compliance with the rights of indigenous peoples in the strategies, policies, programmes and projects facilitated by the different IUCN-ORMA offices; and
(j) including La Mosquitia Honduras and Nicaragua region, as part of IUCN ORMA’s geographical priorities for intervention, guaranteeing strategic alliances with the members of the Union present in the region.
The statement for the record made by the State member Canada in relation to Resolution 4.048 also applies to this Resolution.
4.060 The European Green Belt Initiative [Regional] [Site].
CONSIDERING that the ‘European Green Belt’, the proposed ecological network through Europe – from the Barents to the Black Sea – consists of valuable, unique and endangered habitats and landscapes, represents a cross-section of Europe’s biodiversity, and could become the first transboundary ecological network anywhere in Europe;
RECALLING that in spite of the area’s special historical background as the former ‘Iron Curtain’, which constituted an inhumane death zone and divided East and West Europe for decades, nature was given pause to breathe and flourish, thus enabling the development of this natural “Green Belt” as a common European Nature Heritage;
ACKNOWLEDGING that the Green Belt ecological network is approximately 13,000 kilometres long and passes through nearly all natural geographic regions of Europe, from the Arctic to the Mediterranean, and links different types of landscape, from pristine areas to nature related cultural landscapes, and many important and large nature reserves across Europe;
EMPHASIZING that the European Green Belt is a living historical and cultural monument of recent European history, a tool for sustainable regional development, nature tourism and awareness-raising in terms of nature conservation and the conservation of biological diversity at different social and political levels;
BEING AWARE that the European Green Belt is also an important tool for transboundary cooperation at different levels, for promoting understanding among nations and long-term and peaceful cohabitation;
ALSO BEING AWARE that the European Green Belt is an important migration route for several endangered mammals, such as Brown Bear Ursus arctos, Common Wolf Canis lupus, Wolverine Gulo gulo, Eurasian Lynx Lynx Lynx, Wild Cat Felis silvestris and Eurasian Otter Lutra lutra, contains important staging areas for migratory birds, and is a last retreat for highly endangered species such as the Large Saw-tailed Bush Cricket Polysarcus denticauda, Freshwater Pearl Mussel Margaritifera margaritifera, and Black Stork Ciconia nigra especially in the intensively used landscapes of Central Europe;
RECOGNIZING that the European Green Belt contributes substantially to the implementation of International conventions and agreements such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy (PEBLDS) with the pan-European Ecological Network (PEEN), the Emerald Network under the Bern Convention of the Council of Europe and the Natura 2000 Network under the European Union and the ‘Habitats’ and ‘Birds’ Directives;
NOTING that this pan-European initiative links 23 European States (Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Greece, FYR Macedonia, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey) and includes non-governmental and governmental organizations working with an interdisciplinary approach;
ALSO NOTING the work already done by the Fennoscandian Green Belt since the beginning of the 1990’s and emphasizing its importance as an integral part of the European Green Belt;
FURTHER NOTING that the European Green Belt Initiative established a balanced Programme of Work with seven goals to implement this pan-European ecological network and creating an organizational structure with the IUCN Regional Office for Europe as Coordinator of the Initiative, three Regional Coordinators for the three geographical sections (Fennoscandia and the Baltic States, Central Europe and South-Eastern Europe) and National Focal Points in the participating countries; and
EMPHASIZING that the European Green Belt Initiative is complementary to and builds on existing activities in the regions concerned, and that the three recognized regional sections contribute significantly and equally to the Initiative;
The World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008:
1. RECOMMENDS that IUCN’s members recognize and support the European Green Belt Initiative, which promotes in a participatory manner the conservation of biodiversity in Europe, transboundary cooperation, and sustainable regional development in former border areas;
2. URGES the governments of the 23 participating European States and the European Union to give highest priority to the implementation of the European Green Belt ecological network and to support the National Focal Points and Regional Coordinators in taking forward the Programme of Work; and
3. ENCOURAGES IUCN’s members to support the governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working on this task in the 23 countries along the European Green Belt;
In addition, the World Conservation Congress, at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008, provides the following guidance concerning implementation of the IUCN Programme 2009–2012:
4. CALLS ON the Director General to actively ensure overall coordination of the European Green Belt Initiative.
4.061 The Great Ecological Connectivity Corridor : Cantabrian Range- Pyrenees – Massif Central- Western Alps [Regional] [Site].
CONSIDERING the extraordinary natural and cultural values of the Cantabrian Range, the Pyrenees, the Massif Central, the Western Alps and their transitional areas, which jointly host the greatest number of natural ecosystems in Southwest Europe and constitute one of its major biodiversity areas;
RECOGNIZING that these mountains are the catchment area of most of the rivers of Southwest Europe and that they support people as well as a great number of species in the region;
MINDFUL of the obligations contained in the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (Bonn,1979), the Convention on Biological Diversity (Rio de Janeiro, 1992), and Chapter 13 Sustainable Mountain Development of Agenda 21 (Rio de Janeiro, 1992);
CONSIDERING the commitments established under the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (Bern,1979) and the European Landscape Convention (Florence, 2000);
FURTHER CONSIDERING the provisions of the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy (1995) and the proposal for a Pan-European Ecological Network, promoted by the Council of Europe;
BEARING IN MIND the commitments of the European Union ‘Birds Directive’ (79/409/EEC, 1979) and the ‘Habitats Directive’ (92/43/EEC, 1992), which should be incorporated into the national legislation of EU Member States through effective tools to conform to the ‘Natura 2000’ Network;
RECALLING Resolution 3.039 The Mediterranean mountain partnership and Recommendation 3.105 Conservation of the Cantábrico-Burgalesa mountain range adopted by the 3rd IUCN World Conservation Congress (Bangkok, 2004);
AWARE OF the opportunities that the network of Natura 2000 sites, which constitute 40% of the geographical area covered by this initiative, will provide for the conservation of a physically interconnected and geographically functional ecological network;
CONCERNED by the fragmentation trends that have begun to impact these mountain ranges and aware of the threats implied by such trends in terms of biodiversity conservation, as well as conservation of transitional areas, particularly if the synergy between the potential impacts of fragmentation and those of global climate change is taken into account;
ACKNOWLEDGING the need to promote prevention strategies in order to avoid further fragmentation, enhance resilience of ecosystems and human communities in the face of global change, promote the restoration of severely damaged key areas, and the incorporation of climate- change adaptation measures into resource management and conservation;
ENCOURAGED by progress achieved in recent years by government bodies of territories covered by this initiative (Autonomous Communities, Historic Territories, Regions, etc.) as well as by NGOs, including research, development of plans, programmes and strategies at various levels; and by the fact that there are already significant examples of integration of permeability and connectivity criteria in land and infrastructure planning;
APPRECIATING the Mountain Connectivity Initiative proposed by IUCN during the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress (Durban, 2003), as well as the proceedings of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) in Montreal (1997) and Colombia (1999), and work during the International Mountain Corridors Conference meetings, held in Banff (Canada, 2004), Les Planes de Son (Spain, 2005) and Papallacta (Ecuador, 2006);
FURTHER APPRECIATING similar cooperation initiatives in other mountain areas of Europe and worldwide, particularly the Alpine Network of Natural Protected Areas, considered as the starting point from which this initiative extended south-westward; and
BEARING IN MIND the Planes de Son Declaration, resulting from the International Mountain Corridors Conference, held in Barcelona and Les Planes de Son, October 24–27, and in Vitoria-Gasteiz and Somiedo, October 27–31, 2005, hosted by the Fundació Territori I Paisatge of Caixa Catalunya, with the support of the Council of Europe, Eurosite, Europarc and WCPA’s Theme on Mountain Protected Areas;
The World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008:
1. URGES the Governments of Spain, Portugal, France, Andorra and Italy, European environmental institutions and NGOs to strengthen the Great Ecological Connectivity Corridor: Cantabrian Range – Pyrenees – Massif Central – Western Alps;
In addition, the World Conservation Congress, at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008, provides the following guidance concerning implementation of the IUCN Pr og ramme 2009–2012:
2. REQUESTS the Director General to strengthen work on Mediterranean mountains, including the concept of the Great Ecological Connectivity Corridor: Cantabrian Range – Pyrenees – Massif Central – Western Alps and other similar initiatives.
State and agency members of the United States refrained from engaging in deliberations on this motion and took no national government position on the motion as adopted for reasons given in the U.S. General Statement on the IUCN Motions Process.
4.062 Enhancing Ecological Networks and Connectivity Conservation Areas [Global], [Regional]
NOTING that most biodiversity is today affected by human activities, and that according to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment “… over the past 50 years humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in any comparable period of time in human history”, as a result of which more than 60% of ecosystem services are degraded;
RECALLING that healthy ecosystems provide a multitude of ecological services to humanity and that as such they represent its “life insurance” and the world’s largest development agency;
APPROVING of the Ecosystem Approach developed within the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD);
RECOGNIZING the indispensable contribution of protected areas, which today cover close to 12% of emerged land areas, to the conservation of life on Earth;
FURTHER RECALLING that the 7th Meeting of the Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP7) adopted a Programme of Work on Protected Areas, the overall objective of which was to establish and maintain “… comprehensive, effectively managed and ecologically representative systems of protected areas…” that collectively, will significantly reduce the rate of loss of global biodiversity;
NOTING however that there is a limit to the area which can be set aside as protected areas, and that those areas reserved have geographically fixed, legally defined boundaries;
ALSO RECOGNIZING that the majority of the world’s biodiversity is found outside protected areas and that the latter will not be able to fulfil their protective role without taking into account the biodiversity found within a larger area;
HIGHLIGHTING the vital role that ecological networks could play in the conservation of biodiversity in the face of alterations caused by changes to climate, through, for example, improving the resilience of ecosystems and the dispersion of species;
ENCOURAGED by initiatives for the implementation of networks of protected areas, and initiatives aimed at establishing ecological networks such as the Pan-European Ecological Network (PEEN) and the Natura 2000 network in Europe; Yellowstone to Yukon and boreal conservation efforts in North America, including the Canadian Boreal Initiative; the ‘Alps to Atherton’; Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and ‘Gondwana Link’ in Australia; the Terai Arc in Nepal and India; the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor; the Vilacamba-Amboró in South America and many others;
RECALLING that Recommendation 1.38 Ecological Networks and Corridors of Natural and Semi-Natural Areas adopted by the 1st IUCN World Conservation Congress (Montreal, 1996) called on:
(a) IUCN members to “further the development of ecological networks at national, regional and intercontinental levels as a means of strengthening the integrity and resilience of the world’s biological diversity”; and
(b) the Director General “to review experience in developing and applying ecological networks” and to “promote co-operation in the further development of ecological networks” especially at transboundary sites;
RECALLING the CBD Programme of Work target that, by 2015, “all protected area systems are integrated into the wider landscape and seascape, and relevant sectors, by applying the ecosystem approach and taking into account ecological connectivity and the concept, where appropriate, of ecological networks”;
NOTING that connectivity conservation and ecological networks are a strategic part of landscape and seascape integration of protected areas;
RECOGNIZING that infrastructure built by humans can be a major obstacle to ecological connectivity;
CONVINCED that the loss of connectivity in wildlife corridors leads to ecosystems becoming less resilient and to irreparable losses that have an effect on human welfare and safety;
NOTING that IUCN has a World Conservation Learning Network (WCLN), and that the WCLN Institute was created to offer courses to improve decision making in subjects of high priority to the Union;
RECOGNIZING the critical importance of people in connectivity conservation areas, their values, rights, needs and aspirations, and the need for them to be part of an integrated approach to connectivity conservation areas as part of ecological networks and to enable them to share in the benefits of protecting connectivity;
NOTING the urgency of action required to help retain these natural, interconnected lands and seas due to the pressures of global change, and in particular, the growth in the world’s population from 6.7 billion in 2008 to 9.2 billion people by 2050;
NOTING FURTHER that the new carbon economy provides an opportunity for carbon storage and carbon sequestration in ecological networks including protected areas and connectivity conservation areas, and in particular, in high biodiversity conservation value sites; and
RECOGNIZING the value of terrestrial connectivity conservation areas for the future supply of reliable quantities of high-quality water;
The World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008:
1. REQUESTS states to establish national ecological networks and connectivity conservation areas to strengthen the protection of biodiversity, which include, as appropriate, biological corridors and buffer zones around protected areas; and
2. CALLS ON states to strengthen the integration of biodiversity and ecological connectivity in terrestrial and marine planning, including conservation planning and especially actions on climate change mitigation and adaptation;
In addition, the World Conservation Congress, at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008, provides the following guidance concerning implementation of the IUCN Programme 2009–2012:
3. REQUESTS the Director General, in close collaboration with IUCN’s Commissions, members and partners, to ensure that IUCN plays an active role in facilitating the establishment of ecological networks and connectivity conservation areas by:
(a) undertaking and encouraging work on ecological networks, by promoting exchanges between IUCN partners and members, by elaborating and disseminating relevant examples of policies, plans, methods and tools, by promoting the development of ecological networks in local, national, regional and international policies, and by supporting transboundary cooperation (including across the high seas);
(b) developing wider awareness of the need for and establishment of ecological networks as a critical national and international adaptation and mitigation response to climate change;
(c) enhancing the recognition of the role played by ecosystems, the ecological services they provide and the contributions they make to development and land-use policies;
(d) examining more closely the case of ecological connectivity in marine environments;
(e) achieving a Union-wide (One Programme) approach to connectivity conservation areas in recognition of the interdisciplinary nature of the responses needed and the benefits of the IUCN Secretariat, Commissions, members and partners working together;
(f) developing further guidelines and best practice concerning ecological networks, including advice about conception, governance mechanisms and monitoring of ecological networks, as well as their integration in policies both public and private;
(g) determining, in collaboration with national governments and NGOs, a priority list of strategic connectivity conservation areas that can help:
(i) sustain the natural values of protected areas,World Heritage sites, Biosphere Reserves, Geoparks, Ramsar sites and others;
(ii) conserve species of the world; and
(iii) for terrestrial areas, retain natural water catchments of critical importance to people; and
(h) investigating mechanisms for funding ecological networks and especially connectivity conservation areas and protected areas through the new carbon economy, the water economy, and through national or other government or philanthropic investments; and
4. ASKS the Director General and the IUCN Commission on Education and Communication (CEC) to offer training courses and professional development programmes that describe the benefits and the costs of ecological networks and connectivity that:
(a) include conservation and sustainable development issues, based on experiences (which have led to a real economic assessment where the cost-benefit ratio due to biodiversity loss was high); and
(b) present different options compatible with the maintenance of ecological networks and connectivity.
4.065 Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation, Protected Areas, and Management of Transboundary Waters [Global]
UNDERSCORING that the decline in freshwater biodiversity and the conversion of wetlands, reported by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, the GEO 4, the IUCN Red List Index, and the WWF Living Planet Report, will continue and accelerate if a ‘business as usual’ scenario is followed for increases in water demand and water infrastructure;
RECOGNIZING the links between availability of water and the food crisis, and the urgent need for significant additional investments towards widespread access to affordable food, energy, and water and sanitation services;
NOTING that many transboundary water systems, including 263 river basins draining 45% of the Earth’s surface and crossing the territories of 145 countries, are not subject to adequate management agreements;
ALARMED at the impacts of climate change on freshwater ecosystems and at the predicted security implications from water disputes within and between countries and from demographic change triggered by environmental or conflict-related disasters;
CONCERNED that societal responses to climate change may fail to incorporate water-management concerns (e.g.increased hydropower and biofuel production, cloud seeding, water storage and inter-basin transfers, desalination);
DETERMINED to reduce significantly the rate of freshwater biodiversity loss and to implement integrated river basin management – a key form of the Ecosystem Approach – for promoting the sustainable use, management and protection of freshwater ecosystems;
RECOGNIZING the scientific advances in assessing and applying ‘environmental flows’ toward partly attenuating the environmental impacts of water-management infrastructure;
WELCOMING the freshwater-conservation targets adopted by international instruments, including:
(a) commitments under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, including representation of the diversity of wetlands, and the 2010 target of at least 2,500 designated Wetlands of International Importance (‘Ramsar sites’) covering 250 million hectares;
(b) the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, which includes the protection of “critical habitats”; and
(c) the Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) call to rectify the under-representation of inland water ecosystems in protected areas, through:
(i) conserving at least 10% of inland water ecosystems by area under integrated river/lake basin management by 2010;
(ii) protecting 275 million hectares of wetlands in representative protected areas by 2010; and
(iii) Decision VIII/27, reiterated by COP9, urging parties to ratify and implement the 1997 UN Convention on the Law of Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (‘UN Watercourses Convention’);
FURTHER WELCOMING the Joint Work Plan between the CBD and the Ramsar Convention, the establishment of the Inland Waters Taskforce of IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas, the 2007 Protected Areas Management Effectiveness Tracking-Tool (developed by the World Bank and WWF), embracing freshwater ecosystem management in protected areas, and the Freshwater Ecoregions of the World (FEOW, prepared by The Nature Conservancy and WWF);
RECALLING the water-related international commitments under the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, the Millennium Development Goals, and the 2005 World Summit Outcome; and
ALSO RECALLING Resolution 19.1 The Strategy of IUCN – The World Conservation Union adopted by the 19th IUCN General Assembly (Buenos Aires, 1994), Resolutions 3.006 Protecting the Earth’s waters for public and ecological benefit, 3.045 Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna Rivers Commission, 3.051 Freshwater protected areas, and Recommendation 3.087 Financial institutions and the World Commission on Dams adopted by the 3rd IUCN World Conservation Congress (Bangkok, 2004) and
Recommendation V.31 Protected Areas, Freshwater and Integrated River Basin Management Frameworks endorsed by the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress (Durban, 2003);
The World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008:
1. URGES governments to;
(a) ratify/accede to and implement the UN Watercourses Convention; and
(b) fulfil relevant commitments under international instruments, towards achieving global goals and targets on water, environment and development;
2. ENTREATS governments to:
(a) establish and manage new protected areas and networks to conserve representative, intact and outstanding freshwater ecosystems, in order, inter alia, to maintain their resilience and to sustain ecosystem services;
(b) modify the boundaries of existing protected areas (e.g. to include headwaters), as feasible and necessary, to protect adequately freshwater ecosystems and sustain ecological services;
(c) integrate freshwater considerations into the management plans of existing protected areas, including marine protected areas, where appropriate;
(d) maximize resilience to climate change in the design of freshwater protected areas; and
(e) extend the equivalent protection to freshwater biodiversity that terrestrial biodiversity receives within protected areas, e.g. by controlling water infrastructure development, preventing stocking of exotic species, and managing fishing;
3. ENCOURAGES governments and relevant institutions planning freshwater protected areas to apply available relevant tools, including:
(a) Freshwater Ecoregions of the World as a global freshwater bioregionalization framework;
(b) the Ramsar Classification System for Wetland Type and the Global Freshwater Biodiversity Assessment (prepared by UNEP WCMC), which enable identification of key freshwater areas for biodiversity and FEOW to support gap analysis; and
(c) the Revised IUCN Protected Area Category Guidelines and the 2007 World Bank/WWF Protected Area Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool;
4. RECOMMENDS that governments and stakeholders identify and apply environmental flow requirements for relevant freshwater ecosystems, including floodplains, and conserve remaining free-flowing rivers wherever possible, taking into account useful precedents;
5. CALLS ON governments and other institutions to ensure that climate-change mitigation strategies minimize impacts on freshwater ecosystems and give due regard to the integrated management of land and water, and to consideration of climate-change adaptation in freshwater and associated floodplain protection and management;
6. CALLS ON civil society, governments and development agencies to promote the cooperative, equitable and sustainable use, management and protection of international watercourses, and to engage in the process for entry into force and implementation of the UN Watercourses Convention; and
7. CALLS ON IUCN’s Council and members to advance the ecologically, socially and economically sustainable use and management of freshwater ecosystems by:
(a) promoting integrated river basin management, including in national policies and strategies, considering lessons from around the world and supporting sustainable solutions for improving access to affordable food, energy, water and sanitation, especially for the poorest communities;
(b) contributing to strengthening the governance of transboundary waters, particularly by disseminating the role of the UN Watercourses Convention to improve global freshwater governance, clarifying its applicability in different regions and transboundary watersheds, and supporting its implementation;
(c) providing advice on the design and effective management of freshwater protected areas; and
(d) advancing environmental flows-related training for professionals, and proposing tools and methods for ecosystem functions and service valuation;
In addition, the World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008, provides the following guidance concerning implementation of the IUCN Programme 2009–12:
8. CALLS ON the Director General and IUCN’s Commissions to advance the ecologically, socially and economically sustainable use and management of freshwater ecosystems, including through the IUCN component programme and Commissions, as appropriate, by contributing to the actions called for in sub-paragraphs 7(a) to 7(c) above and in addition by:
(a) advancing environmental flows-related training for professionals, and proposing tools and methods for ecosystem functions and service valuation;
(b) developing guidance on climate-change adaptation and mitigation through the sustainable management of water, associated floodplains and related ecosystem services, for protecting vulnerable ecosystems and people; and
(c) prioritizing the completion of the Global Freshwater Biodiversity Assessment according to the IUCN Red List categories and criteria. State and agency members of the United States abstained during the vote on this motion.
4.070 Sustainable Mountain Development [Global], [Regional]
RECALLING Resolution 2.45 Conservation of mountain ecosystems in Europe adopted by the 2nd IUCN World Conservation Congress (Amman, 2000) and Resolution 3.040 Transboundary cooperation in mountain areas adopted by the 3rd IUCN World Conservation Congress (Bangkok, 2004);
RECALLING Chapter 13 of Agenda 21;
RECALLING Resolutions 53/24, 55/189, 57/245, 58/216, 60/189 and 62/196 of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA);
NOTING the success of the International Year of the Mountains, the implementation of the Alpine Convention, the entry into force of the Carpathian Convention and the establishment of the International Partnership for Sustainable Development of Mountain Regions (the ‘Mountain Partnership’; and
CONGRATULATING the success of those involved in these processes;
The World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008:
1. ASKS the Member States of the Alpine Convention and the Carpathian Convention to take an objective and effective position favouring simplified compliance procedures;
In addition, the World Conservation Congress, at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008, provides the following guidance concerning implementation of the IUCN Programme 2009–2012:
2. REQUESTS the Director General to support and assist in the development of the necessary legally binding instruments, as appropriate, for vulnerable mountainous regions in other parts of the world.
4.131 Conservation of the Western Iberian Peninsula [Regional] [Site]
AWARE that the area of more than 800,000 hectares that forms the Western Iberian Peninsula comprises one of the best examples of the Mediterranean forest agrosystem, and one of the most extensive and significant biodiversity hotspots in Europe, home to various examples of internationally important fauna such as the Iberian Lynx Lynx pardinus, the Iberian Imperial Eagle Aquila adalberti and the Eurasian Black or Cinereous Vulture Aegypius monachus;
TAKING INTO ACCOUNT that the area is per se one of the most important reservoirs of threatened vascular flora in the world, given the characteristics of this ecosystem composed mainly of dehesas (an agrosilvopastoral system) with evergreen woodlands of Cork Oak Quercus suber and/or Holm Oak Quercus ilex, as well as Pyrennean Oak Quercus pyrenaica, the result of the centuries-old interaction of the environment with the traditional human activities of the area, with examples such as the Paradise Lily Paradisea lusitanica, Delphinium fissum subsp. Sordidum Omphalodes brassicifolia, and the Cross-leaved Heath Erica tetralix;
BEARING IN MIND the region’s importance through the 28 protected areas found within its boundaries: 26 belonging to the EU Natura 2000 Network (12 Special Protection Areas (SPAs) under the ‘Birds Directive’, with a surface area of 168,664.10 hectares, and 14 Sites of Community Importance (SCI) under the ‘Habitats Directive’, with a surface area of 184,003 hectares); and two national and autonomous protected areas, the Sierra de Malcata Natural Reserve, covering some 15,000 hectares, established for the protection of the Iberian Lynx and the Eurasian Black or Cinereous Vulture, and the Las Batuecas-Sierra de Francia Natural Park with a surface area of 32,300 hectares; and
OBSERVING the severe threats that this territory is facing, placing at risk its high biodiversity, threats such as depopulation, abandonment of traditional resource use, uncontrolled proliferation of human infrastructure and the effects of climate change, among others;
The World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008:
1. CALLS ON the Governments of Portugal and Spain, IUCN’s members, and other interested parties to develop action plans that:
(a) promote a vision of a unified natural system irrespective of the great diversity of the protected spaces that comprise it; and
(b) guarantee ecological connectivity, the maintenance of biological diversity and the ecological processes typical of the area; and
2. URGES the Governments of Portugal and Spain to:
(a) work together with the goal of preserving this rich transboundary area;
(b) increase conservation efforts for the aforementioned protected areas;
(c) promote and support the role of the organizations working in these areas on behalf of biodiversity conservation; and
(d) promote the declaration of the Sierra de Gata – Dehesas de Azaba – Sierra Malcata Biosphere Reserve in the mid-mountain zone and rebollo oak forests of the Sierra de Gata.
4.135 Environmental Impact of Windbased Power Production in Spanish and Portuguese Mountain Areas [Site].
RECALLING that the Bishkek Global Mountain Summit and the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development, both held in 2002, have reinforced the calls to action and definition of priority actions for sustainable development in mountain areas;
CONSIDERING that IUCN has acknowledged the importance of mountain systems through Resolution 3.038 Conservation and Sustainable Development of Mountain Regions adopted by the 3rd IUCN World Conservation Congress (Bangkok, 2004), which recognized that mountains provide goods and services to half the global population, and which called for sustainable use of their resources and biological diversity;
ALSO CONSIDERING Resolution 3.039 The Mediterranean mountain partnership adopted by the 3rd IUCN World Conservation Congress, which recognized that in spite of its rich biodiversity, the Mediterranean biogeographic region is among those most threatened by deforestation and other land transformation processes, although mountain areas are home to the highest concentration of biodiversity and endemic species;
FURTHER CONSIDERING that Resolution 3.039 noted that many Important Bird Areas and Important Plant Areas are located in these regions, which thus host most of the existing protected areas of the Mediterranean region, and recognized that mountain landscapes result from the interaction over millennia between environmental conditions and human cultures and identities;
TAKING INTO ACCOUNT the European Landscape Convention (Florence, 2000) aimed at promoting landscape protection, management and land-use planning, as well as the organization of European cooperation in this field;
NOTING current developments by the wind power industry in Spanish and Portuguese mountain areas, which entail direct impacts and impacts from auxiliary infrastructure on the mountain landscapes including soil erosion, and on epiphytic and animal species, including several that are included in Annex II of the European Union ‘Habitats Directive’, and Annex II of the EU ‘Birds Directive’ as well as the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species;
ASSUMING that the renewable character of wind power production does not exempt it from adequate location, feasibility and sustainability studies appropriate to the concerned geographical location; and
CALLING FOR due compliance with Articles 6 and 7 of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (the EU ‘Habitats Directive’), whereby Member States shall apply appropriate management plans, specific to the sites or integrated into other development plans, and shall avoid deterioration of natural habitats and the habitats of species, as well as disturbance of the species for which the areas have been designated;
The World Conservation Congress at its 4th Session in Barcelona, Spain, 5–14 October 2008:
1. URGES the Governments of Spain and Portugal to:
(a) carry out environmental impact assessments for projects having an impact on national and regional boundary areas, pursuant to the Espoo Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (1991), whereby the Parties commit to take all appropriate and effective measures to prevent, reduce and control significant adverse transboundary environmental impact from proposed activities;
(b) avoid development of wind power production in protected mountain areas, and not to authorize the establishment of related facilities within protected areas (including those in the Natura 2000 network and those considered as relevant for potentially affected endangered species at the international, national or regional levels), and for surrounding zones, evaluate alternatives and strictly apply Article 6 of the Habitats Directive;
(c) establish exclusion zones for wind power production facilities around the aforementioned areas, since environment and species do not recognize boundaries, and the proximity of such facilities to breeding areas such as forests or rock areas may be harmful to animal populations during periods of high vulnerability; and
(d) develop wind power plans identifying areas where wind power production is authorized or banned on the basis of environmental considerations and not only the wind resource.
State and agency members of the United States refrained from engaging in deliberations on this motion and took no national government position on the motion as adopted for reasons given in the U.S. General Statement on the IUCN Motions Process.
5th IUCN World Conservation Congress, Jeju, Republic of Korea, 2012
M-050 Establishing a forum for transboundary protected area managers
RECOGNIZING the fundamental importance of protected areas in addressing interconnected global and regional issues of environmental change, degradation of biological and cultural resources, human and environmental security, and in the provision of essential environmental goods and services for human and other ecological communities;
GRATEFUL that the establishment and governance of protected areas have been a priority for IUCN and its member organizations;
NOTING however that there is a limit to the areas which can be set aside as protected areas, and that those areas reserved have geographically fixed, legally defined boundaries;
HIGHLIGHTING the vital role that ecological networks play in the conservation of biological and cultural diversity in the face of environmental change or insecurity, through, for example, improving the resilience of ecosystems and species mobility;
OBSERVING that there have been a growing number of transboundary protected areas and increasing experience in cross - border collaboration for protected area management;
ACKNOWLEDGING that transboundary collaborative conservation fosters peaceful relations while addressing common environmental threats;
AWARE that the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) has published a study on Transboundary Protected Areas for Peace and Co-operation, and that many States have furthered biodiversity conservation and peace by establishing collaboratively managed transboundary protected areas;
CONCERNED that despite efforts to promote conservation beyond borders, transboundary protected areas face unique challenges arising from the presence of international or subnational jurisdictional boundaries, including, inter alia, laundering and trafficking of natural resources, inter - jurisdictional legal barriers concerning the movement of rangers, weapons and veterinarian forces or equipment, limited resources to support collaborative programming, difficult fundraising for cross- border activities, regional insecurity, instability of high - level political support, and limited awareness about transboundary conservation experiences in other parts of the world; and
BELIEVING that the effective management of transboundary protected areas will improve through
co-learning between protected area managers based on sharing information and experiences related to in-field challenges, concerns, best practices and opportunities specific to transboundary conservation areas;
The World Conservation Congress, at its session in Jeju, Republic of Korea, 6–15 September 2012:
1. CALLS UPON the Director General, WCPA, the WCPA Transboundary Conservation Specialist Group and Theme on Indigenous Peoples, Local Communities, Equity and Protected Areas ( TILCEPA) to establish a forum for protected area authorities engaged in transboundary conservation that promotes knowledge and information -sharing, capacity - building, and collaboration in addressing common concerns and interests, building on the World Park s Congress networks; and
2. REQUESTS the Director General and IUCN Members to facilitate the participation of relevant protected area authorities, managers and rangers in the transboundary conservation forum.
Sponsor:
Center for Environmental Legal Studies, Pace Law School , United Kingdom
Co- sponsors:
Asociación Mesoamericana para la Biología y la Conservación, Costa Rica
Centre International de Droit Comparé de l'Environnement, France
Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza (CATIE), Costa Rica
Departamento de Ambiente, Paz y Seguridad, Universidad para la Paz, Costa Rica
Indigenous Peoples of Africa Coordinating Committee, South Africa
Instituto de Derecho y Economía Ambiental, Paraguay
Universidad para la Cooperación Internacional, Costa Rica
Rec-149 Transboundary ecological corridors in the Western Iberian Peninsula
MINDFUL of the fact that the Portuguese/Spanish transboundary area in the west of the Iberian Peninsula represents one of the best examples of the Mediterranean forest agrosystem and one of the most extensive and significant biodiversity hotspots in Europe, home to various examples of internationally- important fauna such as the Iberian Lynx (Lynx pardinus ), the Iberian Imperial Eagle ( Aquila adalberti ) and the Eurasian Black or Cinereous Vulture ( Aegypius monachus ), the Black Stork (Ciconia nigra) and the Red Kite (Milvus milvus);
BEARING IN MIND that the area is per se one of the most important reservoirs of threatened vascular flora in the world, given the characteristics of this ecosystem, composed mainly of dehesa (an agrosilvopastoral system) with evergreen woodlands of Cork Oak (Quercus suber) and/or Holm Oak (Quercus ilex), as well as Pyrenean Oak (Quercus pyrenaica ), the result of the centuries - old interaction of the environment with the traditional human activities of the area, and with examples such as the Paradise Lily (Paradisea lusitanica Delphinium fissum subsp. sordidum), Omphalodes brassicifolia and the Cross- leaved Heath (Erica tetralix );
RECOGNIZING the importance of the Portuguese/Spanish transboundary area, as illustrated by the 119 protected areas forming part of the European Union’s Natura 2000 Network (57 Special Bird Protection Areas (SPAs) under the Birds Directive, with a surface area of 1,093,679 hectares; 62 Sites of Community Importance (SCI) under the Habitats Directive, with a surface area of 830,742 hectares; and other national and regional level protection statuses ;
RECALLING that Resolution 4.024 Conservation of the habitat of the Iberian Lynx Lynx pardinus and Recommendation 4.131 Conservation of the Western Iberian Peninsula approved by the 4th IUCN World Conservation Congress (Barcelona, 2008) called for the conservation of the Western Iberian Peninsula ’s biodiversity, recognizing it as a global biodiversity hotspot;
FURTHER RECALLING that Resolution 4.061 Great Ecological Connectivity Corridor: Cantabric Range – Pyrenees – Massif Central – Western Alps called on national administrations and non -governmental organizations ( NGOs ) to strengthen ecological connectivity in the Mediterranean mountains and that Resolution 4.072 Private Protected Areas and Nature Stewardship highlights the global importance of private protected areas and nature stewardship through the creation of a related Working Group;
CONCERNED at the fragmentation trends that are affecting the transboundary natural spaces found in this territory;
AWARE of the threats that such trends mean for the conservation of its biodiversity, and that of its transitional zones;
RECOGNIZING the severe threats facing this territory, including depopulation, the abandonment of traditional resource use, the uncontrolled proliferation of human infrastructure, the fragmentation of ecosystems and the effects of climate change, which are placing its high biodiversity at risk;
MINDFUL of the opportunities that the spaces included in the Natura 2000 Network (which represents 35% of the scope of the Initiative) will offer for the conservation of a physically inter - connected and geographically functional ecological network; and
BEARING IN MIND the need to promote preventive strategies in order to avoid future fragmentation, strategies that will promote the restoration of key zones that have already been severely affected, with the aim of enhancing the resilience of the area ’s ecosystems and human communities to face up to global change;
The World Conservation Congress, at its session in Jeju, Republic of Korea, 6–15 September 2012:
1. URGES the Governments of Spain and Portugal to:
a. work together to ensure the ecological connectivity of the natural spaces of this transboundary area, based on the Natura 2000 Network spaces;
b. coordinate their efforts to preserve the biodiversity of the transboundary spaces;
c. link biodiversity objectives to the relevant production sectors: agriculture, livestock rearing, forestry and fishing, in the transboundary environment;
d. support and encourage initiatives aimed at conserving the biodiversity and the ecological connectivity of the organizations working in the transboundary area;
e. support and promote the Declaration of the Transboundary Biosphere Reserves of Braganza- Zamora and Douro Superior- Salamanca, and Sierra de Gata - Dehesas de Azaba - Sierra Malcata; and
f. exclude the whole area from wind energy and large infrastructure development, particularly dams, as a way of preventing and safeguarding its great wealth and biodiversity; and
2. CALLS on the Governments of Spain and Portugal, IUCN’s Members and other concerned parties to development action plans which:
a. encourage a vision of a single natural environment, regardless of the great diversity of protected areas that it comprises;
b. guarantee ecological connectivity, the maintenance of biological diversity and the ecological processes typical of the transboundary area;
c. promote the protection and creation of networks of private protection areas, involving private owners and NGOs, by means of nature stewardship; and
d. define the boundaries of an area within the Western Iberian Peninsula that could be declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.
State and agency Members of the United States abstained during the vote on this Motion for reasons given in the US General Statement on the IUCN Resolutions Process.
Rec-152 Enlarging and connecting transboundary protected areas for the Ecological Corridor of
Northeast Asia
RECALLING Recommendation 1.38 Ecological Networks and Corridors of Natural and Semi-Natural Areas adopted by the 1st IUCN World Conservation Congress (Montreal, 1996) and
Resolution 4.035 Strengthening IUCN ’s Work on Protected Areas adopted by the 4th IUCN
World Conservation Congress (Barcelona, 2008);
EMPHASIZING the Convention on Biological Diversity (CDB) Programme of Work on Protected Areas Goal 1.2 ‘By 2015, all protected areas and protected area systems are integrated into the wider land and seascape, and relevant sectors, by applying the ecosystem approach and taking into account ecological connectivity/and the concept, where appropriate, of ecological networks. ’ (Kuala Lumpur, 2004);
ACKNOWLEDGING the efforts of other regions on networking protected areas and establishing ecological corridors, such as the ECON NECT, Pan- European Ecological Network, European Alps to the Mediterranean, Cantabrian Range to Western Alps Corridor, Natura 2000 network, and the Tri- national Mont Blanc Massif in Europe; Yellowstone to Yukon Connectivity Corridor in North America; the Terai Arc in Nepal and India; the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor and the Vilacamba- Amboró in South America; Greater Virunga Landscape, Maloti Drakensberg Transfrontier in Africa and many others;
REALIZING that although Northeast Asian countries have strived to protect their own ecosystems such as Baekdudaegan protected area in the Republic of Korea (ROK), Paektusan Mt. Biosphere Reserve in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Changbaishan protected area in China and Sikhote-Alin protected area in Russia, many flora and fauna in Northeast Asia have become extinct and/or endangered regionally and globally, their habitats also being in danger of degradation;
UNDERSTANDING that there is a lack of comprehensive coordinated research on regional ecosystems of Northeast Asia that includes ROK, DPRK, China and Russia;
CONSIDERING that building governance for the ecological corridor among neighbouring countries, such as connecting Baekdudaegan protected area from the southern end to the northern end of ROK by the Korean Ministry of Environment and Korean Forest Service, protecting transboundary areas between China and Russia such as the Lower Tumen River Area by the United Nations North East Asian Sub - regional Programme for Environmental Cooperation (NEASPEC ), have the limitation of being able to extend to the entire reach of Northeast Asia’s protected areas;
REFLECTING on the fact that Northeast Asian countries have displayed the least cross-border cooperation for environmental conservation due to political tension, and IUCN has limited experience of working in this region which needs more support and focus at the international level to conserve environment;
RECOGNIZING the need for comprehensive protection of the precious and threatened natural and cultural heritage of the Northeast Asian countries, with respect to rapid destruction of ecosystems, and the importance of international cooperation in enlarging and connecting PAs that transcend national borders in the context of climate change, biodiversity conservation and maintaining global peace; and
HIGHLIGHTING that IUCN ’s new conservation paradigm of resilience (Nature+ theme of the IUCN World Conservation Congress, Jeju 2012) should encompass environmental approaches more than the stewardship of nature so as to contribute to mitigating national conflicts;
The World Conservation Congress, at its session in Jeju, Republic of Korea, 6 –15 September 2012:
1. URGES the Governments of ROK, DPRK, China and Russia as well as NGOs of the countries concerned to recognize the Ecological corridor of Northeast Asia: the linking up of Baekdudaegan PA, Tumen river basin and Sikhote-Alin Mountains;
2. ENCOURAGES relevant regional and local agencies to promote action plans for the conservation and improvement of biological richness and cultural diversity in Northeast Asia;
3. REQUESTS the Director General, the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC), in collaboration with international organizations and other stakeholders, to promote the above mentioned ecological corridor in Northeast Asia , putting global attention on the need for expanding and linking protected areas in Northeast Asia ; and
4. CALLS UPON the Director General, WCPA and SSC to:
a. support research plans to build long - term linkup methodologies for the conservation of isolated DPRK ecosystem s by creating the grounds for its cooperation and participation; and
b. provide regular exchange o f academic outcomes among IUCN M embers and partners, governments and NGOs of ROK, DPRK, China and Russia to engage in the ecological networking of Northeast Asia.
State and agency Members of the United States abstained during the vote on this Motion for reasons given in the US General Statement on the IUCN Resolutions Process.