Story | 21 Nov, 2017
EU Court orders Poland to stop Białowieża logging or face €100,000 daily fine
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ordered Poland to cease logging in the ancient Białowieża forest, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, or face a possible fine of at least €100,000 per day. The Polish Ministry of the Environment has argued that the logging is necessary to counter a…
Story | 15 Nov, 2017
IUCN and United Nations leaders join at climate change conference to discuss natural World Heritage
This week at the 2017 UN conference on climate change in Bonn (COP23), IUCN highlighted how natural World Heritage is both affected by climate change and provides solutions to its challenges. IUCN Director General Inger Andersen, UNFCCC Senior Director Martin Frick and IUCN experts gathered to…
Story | 14 Nov, 2017
Beyond frontiers – Engaging the Pakistan Navy in coastal governance
Fisheries are the primary livelihood sector for 80% of the coastal population of Pakistan, but this sector contributes to only 0.5% of national GDP and 1% of the country’s labour force. Fish and fishery-related exports yield, on average, a sum of PKR 8.8 billion (US$ 838 million) for the country…
Press release | 13 Nov, 2017
Bonn, Germany, 13 November, 2017 (IUCN) – The number of natural World Heritage sites threatened by climate change has grown from 35 to 62 in just three years, with climate change being the fastest growing threat they face, according to a report released today by IUCN, International Union for…
Story | 07 Nov, 2017
The future of Agriculture and Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction in the Western Balkans
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and IUCN Regional Office for Eastern Europe, North and Central Asia (ECARO) held a regional workshop on “Agriculture and Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction in the Western Balkans” on 31 October 2017 in Belgrade, Serbia. The…
Story | 02 Nov, 2017
Cooperative governance of the Ganges Brahmaputra Meghna Basins (GBM) region was strengthened through the recent launch of a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) vision for improved transboundary water management. The vision, which was developed by a network of over 25 CSOs from Bangladesh, Bhutan,…
Story | 16 Oct, 2017
The trend of the Saye River bank failure: An Environmental Challenge and Concern
CEESP News - by Bala Ibrahim Girku (1), Abdullahi Hassan (2), Golo Mustapha Yakubu (3), and Kaltho Kharbal James (4)
This article assesses environmental degradation caused by erosion resulting in river bank slope instability along the banks of the Saye River. This has been a continual…
Story | 13 Oct, 2017
“The longest and most useful trip to a cave I have ever had”
Ha Long Bay has been recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO twice for its outstanding universal values. But what are those values and why do they make Ha Long Bay so special? Such information seems only to be known by a few scientists and experts while the vast majority of visitors are…
Story | 11 Oct, 2017
Respect sacred Natural Sites to guarantee Human Rights, says new African Commission Resolution
CEESP News - by Fiona Wilton, The Gaia Foundation
Deep in Ethiopia's Rift Valley, a group of African custodians met in 2015 to discuss how to protect the continent's sacred natural sites and territories. Their voices were taken to the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights, where…
Story | 11 Oct, 2017
Ramsar-World Heritage report building on IUCN study highlights nature-culture links
People’s cultural values and community participation contribute to positive conservation outcomes in exceptional wetland areas with dual World Heritage and Ramsar status, according to a new report by the Ramsar Convention Secretariat in cooperation with UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre. Building…