Turtle Islands EXPEDITION

Selingaan island, Sabah Parks© Johny Buis

TBe TBeNEWS TBPA inFocus Transboundary Conservation www.tbpa.net 1

NEWS Save theTurtles: Cooperation to Turtle Islands TBPA inFocus Cycling Silk dition Expedition report:

5 NEW VIDEO 2012 May NEWS Transboundary Conservation TB e Welcome Note

September is approaching. Leaders from government, protected areas is featured in the French Atlantic Marine the public sector, non-governmental organizations, UN Area article. Kate Harris has reported on the exciting agencies, business and social organizations will soon Cycling Silk expedition, covering 10,000 kilometres and gather at the largest conservation event IUCN World visiting transboundary protected areas on the route from Conservation Congress (WCC), to be held in the Republic Turkey to India. In addition to the news from Asia, you have of Korea (Jeju) to discuss and bring forward solutions for sent us transboundary conservation related articles from the most pressing environmental and development issues North America, Europe, and Africa, and as ever, enabled us in the world. One of the most guarded borders in the world, to share information about your initiatives covering almost the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), is newly emerging all continents! We thank everyone for your contributions as a wildlife sanctuary requiring integrated approach and we are happy to continue to distribute news about in safeguarding its natural heritage and peace on the your work in transboundary projects, to inform the wider peninsula. IUCN WCPA Transboundary Conservation community about problems and issues you deal with in Specialist Group has partnered with Korea National your regions, and to enhance awareness about the need Park Service and the German Federal Agency for Nature for cooperative work in nature conservation. Conservation (BfN) to organize a 2-hour workshop on 11 September 2012 and discuss Korean DMZ future alongside Special thanks to all of you who participated in the experiences from the European Green Belt Initiative Transboundary Conservation Specialist Group’s Survey and lessons learnt from international transboundary for the Legal Concept Paper, prepared and led by Michelle conservation areas. Lim and Tanya Rosen. The results of the survey are now More details about ready and can be viewed at www.tbpa.net. the workshop titled Sharing BenefitsFurther on, we invite our network members to put the and Efforts from link to www.tbpa.net on your transboundary projects’ Transboundary websites, to enable easier sharing of information about Conservation are global transboundary conservation issues. In case you © Maja Vasilijevic available at the 2012 would like to feature your work in the Members’ Corner WCC website. section of our website, you are welcome to use this service! TBPA in Focus in the 5th issue of the TB eNEWS presents Turtle Islands Heritage Protected Area, a marine Transboundary Conservation Specialist Group transboundary site shared between Malaysia and the Executive Committee Philippines, where all efforts are focused on conservation IUCN WCPA of the marine turtle population. More news from marine

2 IUCN Category: Surface: Countries: Name: Philippine side,there are about6,000peoplecomprising number from privateoperatorresiding atSelingaan.Onthe side, mainlyParkstaff, securitypersonnelandasmall inhabited. Atotalof55people reside ontheMalaysian Both theMalaysianandPhilippine Turtles Islandsare 1,44 millionturtleeggslaid. 2011 figures translateto2,844nestinggreen turtlesand breaking theprevious record of12,311nests in1995.The of 14,220 green turtlenests were recorded in Baguan, majority nestsinGulisaanIsland,Malaysia.In2011,atotal (Eretmochelys imbricata)alsonestsintheTIHPA, the 1,000 turtlesnestannually. Whilethehawksbillturtle mydas) nestinghabitatsintheworldwhere more than one ofthefewremaining majorgreen turtle(Chelonia TIHPA, together with Berau Islands of Indonesia, form Triangle Initiative. Sulu-Sulawesi MarineEcoregion initiativeandtheCoral established globally. Thisinitiativeisnowplacedunderthe represents thefirstmarinetransboundaryprotected area the Turtle Islands HeritageProtected Area (TIHPA) which reached on 31 May 1996. The agreement established of the marine turtle population in the Turtle Islands was bilateral agreement forthe conservation andmanagement Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines. A Pawikan ConservationProject underthe Department of group ismanagedbytheMalaysian SabahParksandthe Langaan, BakkungaanBesarandBoaan).Thisisland of Tawi-Tawi, Philippines (Baguan, Taganak, Lihiman, Kechil, SelingaanandGulisaan),sixare intheProvince three ofwhichare withinSabah,Malaysia(Bakkungaan Turtle Islands is an island group composed of nine islands, Turtle Islands Cooperation toSave the Turtles: TBeNEWS TBPA inFocus © JohnyBuis 3 II 242,649 ha(totalfortheislandsis308.0ha) Malaysia andthePhilippines TURTLE ISLANDSHERITAGE PROTECTEDAREA http://www.coraltriangleinitiative.net http://www.sulusulawesi.net http://www.arbec.com.my/sea-turtles/tihpa1.php index.html http://oneocean.org/ambassadors/track_a_turtle/tihpa/ Further reading: • • • • The followingare someofthe areasforTIHPA: ofconcern sandy beaches. snorkelling, and visit a mud volcano in Lihiman and white witness turtleconservationinitiatives,dobird watching, economic potentialforthearea, offering opportunitiesto marketed tonearbySabah.Ecotourismhashuge on marineresources forsubsistencewithexcessproduct underemployment. Thelocal economyishighlydependent the residents livebelowpoverty linewithhighdegree of migrants ofvariousethnicbackgrounds. Almost72%of and forillegalmigrantsto/from Sabah. The islandgroup isajumpoff pointforsmuggling Illegal fishing;and Taganak Island; High incidenceofintrusioninthevicinity creating aseriousthreat totheconservationefforts; brought toSandakan(Sabah, Malaysia)forsale,thus Turtle eggsare collectedbythelocalpopulationand Rahimatsah Amat,[email protected] NEWS Transboundary Conservation

TB e TBPA in Focus

The Lady with the Gun

Memory Shakoi has an engaging smile. Dressed in a were three men inside and a haul of elephant tusks. The colourful chitenge, the simple cloth wrap that women poachers were taken by surprise by the two young ladies, wear for a skirt in Zambia, she seems like any other young who called the Zambian Wildlife Authority (ZAWA), which lady in the village. Dressed in trousers, and with a rifle, arrived to arrest the poachers. she’s a different proposition. Memory’s salary is paid by the WWF. Her job is to support Memory is a village scout in Imosho district, just a few the ZAWA park rangers in their anti-poaching efforts. kilometres across the border from Namibia. There is little But as elephants are no respecters of borders, the anti- to separate the two countries at the border – there’s no poaching teams in both countries have to work together. river, just a line on the map. On both sides there are trees, Namibia and Zambia conduct joint anti-poaching patrols elephants; and poachers. As a village scout Memory is on and discuss wildlife movement on a regular basis. Wildlife the lookout for the tracks poachers leave, for snares, and corridors are being established to link the five countries, sometimes for dead elephants. allowing elephants to move from Botswana, where they are in great numbers, through Namibia and Zambia to Imosho is sparsely populated. The villages are within the traditional habitats in Angola. borders of Sioma Ngwezi National Park. There are a few sandy tracks connecting the settlements, and one of Steve Felton, WWF Namibia, [email protected] them leads to the Namibian border. Rumours travel faster then vehicles here, and acting on a tip off Memory set up a road block, waiting for a car. When it arrived, there

4 Park andVelipojë Protected Landscapeborder with potential oftheseareas. Shebenik-JablanicaNational tobetterexploitthenatural and nationalgovernments protected areas andraising awareness thatwillhelp local Shebenik, trainingofficials onthemanagementof local populationinshapingthefuture ofVelipojë and The project, ledbyIUCN,aimstoactivelyinvolvethe people. selected forthevastecosystemservicestheyprovide to National ParkandVelipojë Protected Landscape,both local populationsliving near or within Shebenik-Jablanica project istargetingsustainableeconomicactivitiesfor ecosystem services and biodiversity conservation. The Administration, are identifyingpriorityneedsinsafeguarding with Albania’s MinistryofEnvironment, Forest andWater Development Cooperation(DGCS),inclosecollaboration In atwo-yearproject, experts from IUCNandtheItalian to wolves,bears,lynx,wildboarandmanymore species. and overathird ofthecountry iscovered inforests—home Despite itssmallsize,Albaniahasarichbiologicaldiversity needs ofpeopleaswellnature. national parks and other protected areas to support the ends meet?Oneplanunderwayistogetthecountry’s natural wealthbutwhere many peoplestruggletomake What canbedonetohelpAlbania—acountryofrich Advance Albania TBeNEWS TBPA inFocus © Tomasz PezoldIUCN 5 Environment inAlbania(PPNEA). Albania (INCA) and Protection and Preservation of Natural Members in Albania: Institute for Nature Conservation of DGCS anditsimplementationissupportedbytwoIUCN The project (costingaround €2million)isfinancedby conservation intheregion. is hoped,leadtoabroader, systematicapproach to two countries to discusstheirneeds and viewsand,it will bring stakeholders together from Albania and these Macedonia andMontenegro, respectively. Theproject IUCN ProgrammeEurope, OfficeforSouthEastern © Tomasz PezoldIUCN Tomasz Pezold,EcosystemsProject Officer, [email protected] The 10 conservation efforts. range statesand stakeholders to enable coordinated for transboundarycooperation,andbringstogether Convention onMigratorySpecies(CMS)actsasacatalyst the moverequires cooperation.TheUNEP international conserving andsustainablymanagingtheseanimalson borders.countries, andignoringinternational Clearly, linkingdifferenttheir annualjourneys, ecosystemsand Migratory animalsoftencoverlargedistancesduring Species Networking forMigratory ecological networkstosecure migrationpathways.In 2011, Bergen,Norway)highlighted theneedfor TBeNEWS TBPA inFocus © LudwigSiege th 6 Conference of the Parties to CMS (November Transboundary Conservation across different countries. in strengtheningcooperationandsynergies learning, participatory workshop,drawingontheexpertiseofCMS facilitation oftransboundarycooperationthrough a for lawenforcement personnel,awareness raisingand the ecologicalcorridorsofspecies, provide training will use satellite-collars and ground surveys to identify the GambellaTrans Frontier ConservationTask Force, Conservation Authority(EWCA)incollaborationwith which willbeimplementedbytheEthiopianWildlife of almost 1 million kobs is maintained. The project, ensure that the spectacular transboundary migration migration between Ethiopia and South Sudan to help projects includeacasestudy ontheWhite-eared kob transboundary conservationofmigratoryspecies.Current and maintainecologicalnetworks,toreinforce CMS isworkingtoimplementthismandateestablish long journeys. order toensure animalscancontinuetoundertaketheir antelopes, andoutlinesasetofkeyrecommendations in species suchassnowleopards, red knotsandsaiga which illustratesmigration routes andkeythreats to publication entitled“LivingPlanet:ConnectedPlanet”, Atthesametime,CMSlaunchedajoint concerned. transboundary cooperationamongallstakeholders of ecologicalnetworksformigratoryspecies,andeffective Resolution 10.3,CMSPartiescalledfortheestablishment www.cms.int; www.grida.no/publications/rr/living-planet/ Christiane Roettger,RegionalOfficerforCentralAsia UN Campus,UNEP/CMSSecretariat, [email protected] Website: improve thesustainabilityoftheirindividualeconomies the Congress withconcrete, workableactionplansto non-profit organizations.Theteamsemergedfrom business, environmental groups, motorusers,and Parliament, a mining executive, and a number of small a universitychancellor, aformermemberofCanadian a Tribal Chairman,cityandtownshipelectedofficials, Department ofNaturalResources, countycommissioners, National Forest, OntarioProvincial Parks,Minnesota Ten teamsincludedindividualsfrom theNationalParks, to anactionplan. of guestspeakersandcompletedteamexercises thatled Throughout the four days participants heard from a mix in CommunitiesthatNeighborPublicLandstraining. Conservation Fund’s BalancingNature andCommerce neighbor publiclands.Thesessionwasbasedon workshopthatfocusedoncommunities international teams participatedinthisinnovativeandcollaborative and promoting interest inpubliclands.Ten community to develop strategies for creating sustainable economies Minnesota andOntario,gathered foramulti-dayforum In October2011,over90communityleadersfrom Community Congress Continent PartnershipHostsInternational Two NationsOneRegion: The Heartofthe TBeNEWS TBPA inFocus 7 to meettheneedsofpresent andfuture generations. resources oftheborder lakesregion through collaboration beauty, diversity andproductivity ofthenaturalandcultural managers, seekstosustainandcelebratethehealth, Canadian coalitionoflocalstakeholdersandland The HeartoftheContinentPartnership,anAmerican/ lands inthebroader Heart oftheContinentregion. and connectwithothercommunitiestheirpublic Paul Danicic,ExecutiveDirector, Friendsofthe [email protected]; www.friends-bwca.org Boundary Waters Wilderness, Boundary Waters Wilderness, NEWS Transboundary Conservation TB e Oulanka-Paanajärvi―Potentially the First Transboundary PAN Park

Oulanka National Park in North Finland has been a certified The work was started in October 2011 as a joint effort member in the PAN Parks network since 2002. The of Metsähallitus, the manager of Oulanka National Park, neighboring Paanajärvi National Park, on the Russian side and the management of Paanajärvi National Park. We of the border, has been a member since 2005. The long- were assisted by Ms Elena Osipova, who worked on term collaboration between the parks was acknowledged preparing the necessary documentation as part of her with the EUROPARC Transboundary Park certificate in internship. An independent evaluation group will do an 2005. Now the next logical step is to jointly apply for a on-site evaluation in June 2012. While working on the PAN Parks certificate. PAN Parks process, the parks are preparing to start a joint EU-funded development project with key emphasis A joint PAN Parks membership requires that all the on the improvement of capacity for tourist services. principles and criteria for certification are evaluated for the whole transboundary park. In park management Matti Hovi, Park Superintendent, Oulanka NP, this means preparing a summary of all the essential Metsähallitus, [email protected] documents, including the management plan and sustainable tourism plan. Also, a common stakeholder Additional information: forum to address transboundary management issues has http://www.outdoors.fi/destinations/nationalparks/ to be established to ensure local support and dialogue oulanka/Pages/Default.aspx with local communities around the parks. http://parks.karelia.ru/paanajarvi/

8 MPAs in the Atlantic Arc thanks to a dynamic map tool. the MAIAportal,whichoffers ageographicoverviewof The latest achievement of the project is the creation of Protected Areas Agency istheleadpartnerofproject. MPA designation andmanagement.TheFrench Marine from theUK,France,SpainandPortugal,involvedin MPA managersandstakeholders.MAIAgathers partners cooperation project with theaimofcreating anetwork of The MPAs intheAtlanticArc network(MAIA)isaEuropean potential oftheMAIAon-lineGISviewer. the process in2012forMPAs andhighlightingthe Agency (Agencedesaires marinesprotégées) launched Committee andtheFrench MarineProtected Areas categories, apartnershipbetweentheFrench IUCN In thecontextofanationalprocess ofassigningIUCN for agroup ofFrench marineprotected areas (MPAs). assess IUCNprotected area (PA) managementcategories The French Atlantichasbeen chosenasapilotarea to for IUCNManagementCategories Marine Area:Pilot Area French Atlantic A TBwwwe.tbpa.netNEWS TBPA inFocus 9 protected_areas/mpa_data_sheets http://www.maia-network.org/homepage/marine_ datasheets: For more informationabouttheAtlanticMPA on-line 2012. Savethedate! MAIA network, in Arcachon (France) from 3-7 December Network, tobeorganisedwithintheframeworkof during the1 for all MPAs of the French Atlantic coast will be presented advisory council.ThefinalassignmentofIUCNcategories categories designations,withtheassistanceofan will thenofficiallyconfirmtheIUCN PAmanagement department of the French Ministry in charge of ecology in theFrench Atlanticarea. TheWater and Biodiversity easier, asalmost allFrench MPA designationsare present The MAIAGISdatabasewillmakeIUCN’s workinFrance line MPA datasheets. MPA sites’managementissuesissynthesizedintheon- Moreover, relevant informationaboutstandard dataand The MAIAnetwork’s team:[email protected] st Conference oftheAtlantic Arc MPAs TBeNEWS NEWS Transboundary Conservation TB e Good Progress and New Risks for the “Amazon of Europe”

The lower courses of the Drava and Mura Rivers and a lead, key issues, common principles and guidelines for connected section of the Middle Danube are among harmonised management will be agreed and applied in Europe’s ecologically most important riverine areas: WWF the future TBR cooperation framework. calls it the “Amazon of Europe”. The CB agreed to hold its next meeting in May 2012 in The 700 km long “green belt” connects more than Croatia at the TBR core area, Kopacki Rit Nature Park. At 800,000 ha (including 230,000 ha of protected areas) of the same time, however, progressing detail engineer plans highly valuable natural and cultural landscapes in Austria, for regulating the lower Drava and the Danube constitute Croatia, Hungary, Serbia and Slovenia that will become urgent threats. They trigger multiple intensive NGO the world’s first penta-lateral Biosphere Reserve. This is lobbying and appeals for more integrated government the key message of a Ministerial Declaration signed in work to preserve this river jewel. March 2011 by the five countries concerned. Alexandre Zinke, Head, Zinke Environment Consulting A first meeting of the new governmental Coordination for Central and Eastern Europe, [email protected] Board (CB) establishing the Mura-Drava-Danube Transboundary Biosphere Reserve (MDD-TBR) was held For more information: "

"" " " on 28 October 2011 in Budapest. It was preceded by " http://www.amazon-of-europe.com/

" " the first meeting of the International Working Group, an )" Graz informal stakeholder forum supported by WWF, ensuring Transboundary river system of the Mura, Drava and Danube "

" " AUSTRIA regular inputs from non-governmental bodies to the work " " " Mur

Murska Sobota of the five governments. These meetings, prepared by !( " " " SLOVENIA D " " rava " M )" ura the Hungarian Ministry of Rural Development and WWF, Maribor

" Ptuj (! Ormož " !( " Čakovec indicated different stages of national preparatory work for " !( " !( " " " " the MDD-TBR. While Hungary (2009) and Croatia (2011) Varaždin

Koprivnica already submitted their nominations to UNESCO, Austria, (! HUNGARY

Szentlőrinc !( )" Slovenia and Serbia are expected to follow by 2013. Pécs Barcs CROATIA !(

!( Virovitica D r av a !( At the Budapest meetings, WWF presented a Road Donji Miholjac SERBIA Map for implementing the TBR. This supports common Planned Transboundary UNESCO Biosphere Reserve D an between Austria, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia and Slovenia; )" ube Našice Osijek understanding, timing and commitment on the way Core and buffer zones (legally protected areas); about 230,000 ha !( " Hydropower plants towards a well functioning TBR-MDD. Under the CB 0 20 40 60 80 100 Km ¯

10 of wildspecies and spaces. Now backhome–totherelief all tobetterunderstandhowborders impacttheintegrity officials– communities, wildlifebiologists, andgovernment across theirtransboundaryranges,andinterviewinglocal thelayofland,trackingmigratoryspecies learning and armiesenforce. Sowespentmonthsineachregion, threatened by, thearbitraryboundariesthatatlasesdepict Silk Road’s borderland ecosystems are oblivious to, yet the Ustyurt,Pamir, plateaus inbetween,the andTibetan From theCaucasustoKarakorummountains,andon and usingabicycletoreach them. remote alpinedesertsoftheSilkRoad as casestudies, conservation, and geopolitics of borderlands, using the was totestanddeepen our understanding of thescience, finishing inLeh,India.Ourgoallaunchingthisproject called CyclingSilk,startinginIstanbul,Turkey and 10-month, 10-country, 10,000-kilometerfieldexpedition Last year my friend Melissa Yule and I completed a Expedition Report: CyclingSilk TBwwwe.tbpa.netNEWS TBPA inFocus © KateHarris 11 of theworldare acontinualsource ofinspirationandhope. field. Your commitmenttoprotecting thewildborderlands conservationists around theworld,whetheronlineorin been theopportunitytointeractwithsomanyfantastic the expedition. One of the greatest joys of this project has encouragement, adviceandcontactsbefore andduring Conservation SpecialistGroup whooffered We wanttothankeveryoneintheTransboundary beyond borders. and intheprocess, Ihope,inspire more peopletothink Silk Road’s intosharprelief, transboundarywildernesses my aimwiththisbookistothrow thecontoursof creative nonfiction, and naturalhistory withadventure, explorations. Fusingconservationfield research with of ourlegs–Iamnowwritingabookbasedonthese Kate Harris,www.cyclingsilk.com TBeNEWS NEWS Transboundary Conservation TB e The Mayombe Forest Transfrontier Conservation Initiative

The Mayombe forest, shared between the Democratic Mayombe Forest Ecosystems Transfrontier Conservation Republic of Congo (DRC), Angola, the Republic of Congo Area, including land uses, policies and legislation. A and Gabon, forms the southern-western margin of tropical draft strategic plan was presented for the governments’ rainforest in West and Central Africa, and of the distribution approval. of a large variety of related flora and fauna, among them the central chimpanzees, western lowland gorillas and Tamar Ron, Biodiversity Conservation Consultant, forest elephants. Despite its ecological importance, the [email protected] Mayombe forest was subjected to decades of intensive degradation and biodiversity loss through logging and encroachment, poaching, unsustainable development and mining, and invasive plant species. It still enjoys only little protection.

The Mayombe forest transfrontier conservation initiative, aiming to protect and sustainably manage the area through cooperation between the countries that share it (initiating from its southern part), and through a participatory approach with stakeholders’ engagement, was conceptualized in Angola since the early 2000s. The Cabinda Declaration and Memorandum of Understanding were signed between the Ministers of the Environment of Angola, Congo and DRC in July 2009. National funding was further committed in January 2012.

Protected Areas in the Mayombe ecosystems include Luki Biosphere Reserve in DRC; Dimonika Biosphere Reserve, Conkouati-Douli National Park and Tchimpounga National Reserve in Congo; and the recently gazetted Maiombe National Park in Angola. Several studies were realized to identify potential conservation areas and ecological corridors, and to analyze the conditions for creating the

12 TBeNEWS .tbpa.net

www TBPA in Focus Intercontinental Cooperation Sets Goals until 2015

The Intercontinental Mediterranean Biosphere Reserve Milagros Pérez Villalba, Technical Assistant for (IMBR), Andalusia (Spain) – Morocco, is a transboundary Management, General Directorate for Natural Areas and Biosphere Reserve declared by UNESCO in 2006. Social Participation, Regional Ministry for Environment in Spanning 907,185.02 hectares, the IMBR includes the Andalusia (Spain) Spanish provinces of Malaga and Cádiz, and the Moroccan cities of Chefchaouen, Larache, Ouezzane and Tetouan, Email: [email protected] inhabited by more than 500,000 people. The cooperation between Spain and Morocco in the management of IMBR is based on a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed by the High Commissioner for Water, Forests and Combating Desertification (Morocco), the Ministry of the Environment, Rural and Maritime Affairs (Spain), and the Regional Ministry of the Environment, Regional Government of Andalusia (Spain), on 5 July 2011. The Joint Action Plan 2011-2015 enables the implementation of IMBR objectives, including to: contribute to the conservation of natural resources; promote a sustainable model of development; and promote the institutional cooperation and shared management between the Spanish, Andalusian and Moroccan administrations.

Considering the high number of people living in the transboundary IMBR, with the strait of Gibraltar being at the centre between the two countries, the 2011-2015 Action Plan includes communication, sensitization and social participation as its specific objective. The MoU represents a very important base for the continuity of the Biosphere Reserve, as it formally enables coordination of relations between all the actors―administrative, institutional, social and scientific―involved in the complex management system of this transboundary reserve.

13 NEWS Transboundary Conservation TB e Wilderness Guidance Document in Europe

There were two remarkable policy successes for Europe’s ecosystem services and benefits of wilderness areas, wilderness in 2009. First of all, the European Parliament management strategies and communication approaches adopted a special report on wilderness with a huge of wilderness areas. majority of yes votes, which provides the popular mandate for NGOs to work on wilderness issues. Secondly, the Based on a questionnaire, which was distributed among European Commission financed a wilderness conference Natura 2000 site managers, various management under the Czech EU Presidency in May, which resulted with measures are presented in the document. While best- the development of the Agenda for Europe’s Wilderness practice examples from EU Member States are not and Wild Land Areas (a.k.a. Prague Message). Following included in the document, they will be accessible at: upon these successes the European Commission decided http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/natura2000/ to finance the drafting of a special wilderness guidance wilderness/index_en.htm. The wilderness guidance document for Natura 2000 site managers. document will be available at the same website.

A consortium formed by Alterra (lead partner), Eurosite Zoltan Kun, Executive Director, PAN Parks Foundation, and PAN Parks Foundation was contracted to input into [email protected] the guidance document. Staring from December 2010, the project is about to end soon. The draft guidance document was submitted to the European Commission which will put the final wording after consultation of Member States representatives. The project included the following elements: proposal of a practical definition of wilderness, analysis of the current policy framework for wilderness protection in Europe, ecosystem resilience,

14 • • • • • The keyfeatures ofthisagreement are: implementation ofthisagreement. Park inCameroon demonstrates theurgentneedfor than a hundred elephants in the Bouba Ndjda National transboundary complex.Therecent massacre ofmore and managementoftheBoubaN’djidaSenoOura signed anagreement for the cooperativeestablishment ofCameroonIn August2011,thegovernments andChad of TransboundaryProtected Areas Towards Collaborative Management TBwwwe.tbpa.netNEWS TBPA inFocus © JoelleDufour policies; Harmonization ofstrategicbiodiversity management based ones; structures atalllevels,andparticularlythefield- Strengthening ofprotected areas management biodiversity andprotected areas; Sensitization ofcommunitiesontheimportance experiences; management ofprotected areas andsharingof between thetwocountriestofosterco- Creation ofcollaborativemanagementplatforms people-wildlife conflicts; management ofprotected areas, inorder toavoid Enhancement ofcommunityinvolvementinthe 15 the RepublicofCongo. between Cameroon, theRepublicofCentralAfrica,and transboundary complexsuchastheTri-National Sangha build ontheexperienceofcollaborativemanagement recent massacre ofelephantsinBoubaNdjida.Onecould to contributeavoidingdramaticsituationssuchasthe sustainability of naturalresources. Thisisalsoexpected the livelihoodoflocalcommunitiesandenhance The implementationofthisagreement willsurely improve • Leonard Usongo,CountryDirector, IUCNCameroon, capacities ofpersonnel. personnel, andstrengthening ofanti-poaching strengthening oftheparksecurity, increase of Fostering thefightagainstpoachingthrough [email protected] TBeNEWS NEWS Transboundary Conservation TB e New Structure of B3P Activities the European Green in the Balkans Belt

IUCN decided to retreat from their active role as overall coordinator of the European Green Belt Initiative, while taking over a more representative role in the sense of a patronage. The European Green Belt runs from © Peter Spafford the Barents to the Black and Adriatic Seas following the former Iron Curtain. The Initiative to protect these At this time of year, the Balkans Peace Park Project European-wide areas was coordinated by IUCN, while (B3P) is firming up plans for its fifth Summer Programme for each geographical section, a Regional Coordinator in the Albanian highlands. Children and young people was called in: the Baltic Fund for Nature (BFN) assigned in the community of Thethi will once again be joined by the Association of Zapovedniks and National parks of in their school by international volunteers and local North-West Russia―in charge of the Fennoscandian and Albanian teachers with a varied curriculum of English, the Baltic States, BUND (Friends of the Earth Germany) of environmental studies, and outdoor activities. This year the Central European, and EuroNatur of the southernmost sees a new outpost of the summer programme. For the stretch, the South-Eastern European Green Belt. As no first time, a team of teachers and volunteers will spend core funding for the European Green Belt Initiative is time in Vermosh, a village near Thethi and if anything more available, most of the coordination and communication remote. The team have a range of skills and experience to activities implemented by IUCN as overall coordinator and bring to the young people of Vermosh, including teaching by BFN, BUND and EuroNatur as Regional Coordinators English, drama, and creative writing. were financed within externally funded projects or by own resources of the respective organization. This proved to As ever the B3P has the bigger picture in view. In be no longer feasible, and with IUCN stepping out as October 2011 an important meeting was convened the overall coordinator, there was a need to re-structure by the charity, along with Deutsche Gesellschaft für management of the Initiative. Internationale Zusammenarbeit (German Agency for International cooperation/GIZ) and others, to address the One approach is to strengthen the role and the challenge of cross-border controls. It was attended by a cooperation of the Regional Coordinators by creating an healthy variety of tourist organisations, mountain activity Executive Board of the European Green Belt Initiative. In and environmental groups, as well as border police this Executive Board – which will take decisions between from Kosovo (territory under the United Nations Interim Pan-European Meetings – also one National Focal Point Administration Mission), Montenegro and Albania. Being and one NGO Partner per region should be represented. able to walk through the transboundary mountains of In order to get things started the Regional Coordinators Prokletije/Bjeshkët e Nemuna is essential to the vision of agreed that EuroNatur acts as information hub for the the Balkans Peace Park Project. Helpful steps were taken European Green Belt Initiative till the next Pan-European to enable this to happen. Meeting which is scheduled for 2012. B3P also participated in the first trilateral stakeholder EuroNatur, [email protected] meeting in the proposed transboundary protected area Prokletije/Bjeshkët e Nemuna Mountains, held on 15-16 March 2012 in Gusinje, Montenegro. The discussions involved international organisations, ministry representatives from Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo and also regional NGOs, and were aimed at achieving joint actions on biodiversity conservation and sustainable development in the cross-border region.

Peter Spafford, [email protected]

16 landscape conservation vision. Initially proposed in 2008, Turkey’s firstwildlifecorridor isthenextstepinKuzeyDoga’s wildlife. Their research documented Turkey’sbased ecotourismwork focusedonnortheastern based conservation,ecological research, andvillage- (GDNCNP), hasbeendoinglong-term,community- Directorate ofNature ConservationandNationalParks organization KuzeyDoga, incollaborationwiththeGeneral and wild cats.Inthepastsixyears,environmental important placesinTurkey forbrown bears, wolves,lynx, Anatolian globalbiodiversityhotspots,isoneofthemost located attheintersectionofCaucasus andIrano- The Karsregion Turkey, ofnortheastern ahighplateau Wildlife Corridor Turkey’s First vulnerability, andpotentiallyreducing theirgeneticdiversity. habitat forlargemammalspecies,increasing their shrinking old-growth forests continue,providing inadequate captured in. However, legal and illegal logging of Sarikamis’ Sarikamis-Allahuekber NationalPark(NP)theywere keystone predators useanarea 13timeslargerthanthe wolves inTurkey andshowedthatinonlytwomonths these of lynx inKars,obtainedthefirsthomerangeestimatesfor subspecies of lynx,discovered a newbreeding population TBeNEWS TBPA inFocus © KateHarris 17 wild cat and two conflict. hopefully willalsohelpreduce thelocalhuman-carnivore carnivores, willconnecttheirisolatedpopulations,and This corridorwillprovide additionalhabitatforlarge the region. corridor willalsopromote transboundaryconservationin border theBorjomi-KharagauliNP, Turkey’s firstwildlife are connectedtoGeorgia’s Akhaltsikheforests that on theTurkey-Georgia border. AsArdahan’s Posofforests Artvin, andArdahan, allthe way totheCaucasusforests Mountains NP, through theprovinces ofKars, Erzurum, extend for82km,from SarikamisForest-Allahuekber The wildlifecorridorwillcover23,500hectares andwill Ministry ofForestry andWater Works inDecember 2011. officials in2011,andsignedthefinalagreement withthe KuzeyDoga created thecorridor mapwiththegovernment Cagan Sekercioglu, Ph.D.,UniversityofUtah& KuzeyDoga Society Website: www.kuzeydoga.org , [email protected] NEWS Transboundary Conservation TB e ‘Beauty and the Beef’

Produced in 2012, “Beauty and the Beef: Achieving The video (22 minutes) is viewable via Wildlife Conservation Compatibility Between Wildlife Conservation and Society’s (WCS) AHEAD website www.wcs-ahead.org, Livestock Production” is a must see video for anyone and a limited number of DVDs are available upon request. interested in the wildlife / livestock / human health and livelihoods interface in southern and East Africa. It Shirley Atkinson, AHEAD Senior Policy Advisor, WCS, examines a dilemma faced by many African farmers, [email protected] particularly those living in transfrontier conservation areas (TFCAs). International trade practices preclude them from farming cattle for meat export in the same area as wildlife because of disease concerns. If they want to export their beef to wealthy nations, they will have to get rid of wildlife species like buffalo or put up environmentally damaging veterinary fences.

Robin Lyonga lives in the Kavango Zambezi TFCA. He and his community are poor. What should he choose when trying to lift himself and his community out of poverty: protecting the wildlife and pursuing opportunities related to ecotourism and trophy hunting, or turning his back on conservation and selling his cattle into the lucrative beef export market? The truth is that there is a win-win solution: Robin Lyonga and his community can earn an income from conservation and sell their beef to the export market. All that is needed to enable this potentially bright future for millions of African cattle farmers is a small change in attitude on the part of wealthy trading nations.

18 TBeNEWS www.tbpa.net Announcements Towards the IUCN World Conservation Congress

Registration for the IUCN World Conservation Congress (WCC), to be held in Jeju, Korea, from 6 to 15 September 2012, is now open. 30 percent discount is available if you register until the 5th of July. WCC will explore environmental and development issues in relation to Nature+ climate, Nature+ food, Nature+ development, Nature+ people and governance, and Nature+ life. To register for the Congress, visit: http://www.iucnworldconservationcongress.org/get_involved/congress_registration

Web-spaces for Forum events are also accessible at www.iucn.org/2012forum. The web-spaces give visitors access to all important information on events and provide event organizers with a platform to promote their event, hold online discussions etc.

If you plan to hold small events on an hourly basis, WCPA Members booth can be booked by contacting Delwyn Dupuis at [email protected]. Deadline is 10 August 2012.

A Protected Planet Pavilion will be the hub for protected area events during the Congress and for showcasing Protected Planet. It will include launches of products, initiatives and projects implemented by partners, discussions, network gatherings and many more activities that will enable you to promote your work on protected areas.

More information on your travel to Jeju can be found at: http://www.iucnworldconservationcongress.org/get_involved/practical_tips/

Changes in WCPA Europe Leadership

IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) recently appointed Andrej Sovinc as interim Regional Vice Chair for Europe, after Stig Johansson had to step down from this position. Stig Johansson moved to Washington DC to work with the World Bank as the Senior Forestry Specialist, and was unable to continue coordinating WCPA Europe. The Transboundary Conservation Specialist Group wishes him all the best in his future work!

Andrej Sovinc has been involved with WCPA work for many years. One of the key products coordinated by him was a 1997 publication Parks for Life: Action for Protected Areas in Europe. Among one of the five thematic priorities, the publication included cooperation in transboundary protected areas. Currently, the new Vice Chair for Europe is seeking WCPA European Members input about their work in protected areas―highlights of the initiatives and outcomes of the meetings you are involved in, experiences in protected areas and how you can contribute most to the work of WCPA in Europe.

Andrej Sovinc can be contacted at: [email protected]

19 NEWS Transboundary Conservation TB e Transboundary Ecosystems Bill Passed in East Africa

The East Africa Legislative Assembly (EALA) passed the the Bill lasted some six hours. Some members of the East African Community Transboundary Ecosystems Assembly noted the Bill must not contradict with existing Bill 2010 on 31 January 2012 in Kampala, Uganda. laws and policies in the partner states, while it was also The Bill, now moving closer to be signed into law by noted that the Bill actually complements the existing laws partner heads of states, aims to ensure sustainable use on issues of transboundary nature. While addressing and management of shared natural resources in East issues of common interest, the Bill, and hopefully the African wetlands, forests and protected wildlife. It seeks future law, harnesses the region’s natural assets for to establish a Commission managing transboundary the future, seeking to manage potential conflicts on the ecosystems in the region, and thus contributing to the transboundary areas such as Lake Nyasa and Lake protection of livelihoods and improving the quality and Tanganyika. conservation of the region’s ecosystems. The East African Community Transboundary Ecosystems The EALA, an independent, legislative body of the East Bill will now go to the heads of states for assent and African Community, was formally launched by the heads should it be signed by the five countries, it will become of states of Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania in 2001, to be the law. later joined by Rwanda and Burundi. Its mandate relates to enabling cooperation between the above countries More information: on matters of common concern. The EALA’s debate on www.eala.org

20 TBeNEWS www.tbpa.net Publications

Cooperation in Practice

Jan van der Molen and Hannah Ietswaart wrote a book titled Crossing Borders: Creating and Managing Cross-border Regional Alliances. Published in March 2012, the book focuses on transboundary regional cooperation in daily practice. The foundation of this book is formed by the Crossing Borders theory (Van der Molen, 2011), supplemented Creating anD managing Cross-BorDer regional allianCes with practical experiences of the authors in the area of cross-border cooperation. This Practical handbook to book offers a practical theory of action with knowledge, strategies and tools to initiate, the Crossing Borders theory Jan van der Molen & Hannah Ietswaart manage and design cross-border partnerships, taking into account the effects of state borders. The book can be downloaded for free on the new website: www.crossingbordersacademy.org

What Do We Think about Transfrontier Partnerships?

Attitudes and opinions of local and national public sector stakeholders towards Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Botswana, a paper wrote by Naomi N. Moswete, Brijesh Thapa, and Brian Child, published in the International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology (Vol 19, Issue 1, February 2012), assesses the attitudes and opinions of primary stakeholders about establishing partnerships between protected areas, adjacent communities and other management agencies. The study employed a qualitative inquiry to assess factors that influence public sector stakeholder © Ger Bergkamp/IUCN support for community based ecotourism development in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. Findings revealed variations in opinion between local and national representatives in relation to cooperation and partnerships, conservation projects, park management, tourism development and park benefits to local communities. There was overall uncertainty with respect to the designation of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, due to unfavourable conditions for adjacent local people, local authorities and village leaders it generated. Major policy concerns were a low level of community participation in park activities and a lack of collaboration and communication between management and residents. The paper can be downloaded from http://www.tandfonline.com

Governance of Shared Waters

The goal of the publication Governance of shared waters: legal and institutional issues, by Grethel Aguilar and Alejandro Iza, is to contribute to a better understanding of the legal and institutional arrangements necessary for promoting good governance of transboundary waters between two or more states. The publication aims to strengthen the capacity of various stakeholders, and to help reach the ideal that water should be considered as a vehicle for integration rather than as a source of conflict. Download at: http://data.iucn.org/dbtw-wpd/edocs/EPLP-058-rev-En.pdf

21 TB eNews Guidelines for your Editor in Chief Maja Vasilijević contributions Contact [email protected] The TB eNews contains information on your activities related to Proofreading: Tanya Rosen enhancement of transboundary conservation and cooperation. You are welcome to send us news about relevant projects Design and initiatives, to review any past event on transboundary UNITgraphics.com - conservation, and announce a future workshop, seminar, or a Imre Sebestyen, jr conference. We shall include any new publications, websites or funding opportunities that you send us. Supported by IUCN WCPA In order to ensure all articles are included in one of our next issues, we would welcome contributions that contain up to 300 words in TB eNews is edited and prepared by IUCN length. Please also include any graphic addition (photograph, logo, WCPA Transboundary Conservation map or similar), indicating the credits. The size of the photographs Specialist Group (TBC SG). The views expressed herein are those of the has to be minimum 500 kB. You are responsible for the content of author(s) and TBC SG accepts no liabilty your contributions and all articles should contain the name of the for any errors, misprints or ommissions. author and contact email. Unless stated otherwise, the opinions in this newsletter should not be interpreted This newsletter is being prepared by IUCN WCPA Transboundary as those of IUCN WCPA. Conservation Specialist Group, which reserves the right to edit and shorten the texts as appropriate. TB eNews is prepared on quarterly basis. All contributions should be sent to Maja Vasilijevic at [email protected].

Thank you for your cooperation, Transboundary Conservation Specialist Group Executive Team