Report ’s National Committee for UNESCO Programme on “Man and the Biosphere”. Activities for the period 2008 - 2011

According to the decisions taken at the 35th and 36th Sessions of the UNESCO General Conferences, recommendations of the international conference “EuroMAB-2009” (October, 2009) regarding the main directions of MAB activities in 2009 - 2011, the provisions of Madrid Action Plan, 22nd session of the International Coordinating Council, the National Committee of Ukraine for UNESCO Programme on “Man and the Biosphere” (hereinafter referred to as UNESCO-MAB Ukraine) has been involved into coordination and scientific and methodical guidance of scientific research aimed at the elaboration of scientific bases for the national strategy and methodology of environmental preservation and sustainable development, system research of processes, forecast and complex estimation of environmental changes under the influence of man-made factors. The scientific bases for optimization of biotic diversity and landscape for long-term sustainable development have been elaborated. The study on the elaboration of strategy and methodology for further development and the foundation of the principles of nature and biosphere reserves’ functioning as regional scientific sites for effective conduct of research, monitoring, education and training have been carried out as well as the ecotourism development and their use as models for the organization of land use and the elaboration of well-founded approaches to the principles of sustainable development.Within the framework of the adopted decisions basic scientific efforts were directed at the development of Ukraine's national ecological network and its integration into the all-European ecological network, the improvement of the existing system of nature reserves, national nature parks, further development of the biosphere reserve's network and their unification on the basis of joint planning of the process of environmental preservation, the enlargement of transboundary biosphere reserves’ network, development of international cooperation in the field of preservation and sustainable use of biodiversity through general management of transboundary ecosystems based upon the principles envisaged by the UNESCO Seville Strategy for biosphere reserves. The biosphere reserves in this respect will provide for the preservation and renaturalization of biological and landscape diversity, cultural heritage, forming of the new vision concerning the interconnection between the solution of the preservation problems and sustainable development, scientific understanding of the sustainable development processes, as well as for the development of international cooperation, regional economy and ecotourism. 2

The activities of UNESCO-MAB Ukraine have been coordinated with the activities of UNESCO Secretariat, National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO, and Permanent Delegation of Ukraine to UNESCO. During the report period UNESCO-MAB Ukraine on the instructions of UNESCO Secretariat was actively involved into the preparation of proposals concerning candidates from Ukraine for obtaining scholarships of the MAB Programme and obtaining the Sultan Qaboos scholarship in the field of environmental protection as well as Michel Batisse Award for Biosphere Reserve Management. UNESCO-MAB Ukraine submitted the nomination form for the new biosphere reserves “Desnianskyi” and “Roztochya” as well as the forms for periodic reviews of Dunaiskyi – the Ukrainian part of the transboundary biosphere reserve Delta (/Ukraine), Carpathians, Uzhanskyi as the Ukrainian part of the transboundary biosphere reserve "Eastern Carpathians" (Poland/Slovak/Ukraine), “Askania-Nova” and biosphere reserves. UNESCO-MAB Ukraine also provided the scientific and organizational maintenance of the first phase of UNESCO-JFIT Project “Establishment of a Transboundary Biosphere Reserve and a Regional Ecological Network in Polesie (Belarus/Poland/Ukraine)”, which generates new scientific knowledge through enhanced transborder scientific cooperation, was an important contribution to the conservation of water resources and biological diversity in the Polesie region and ultimately to sustainable development. Presently UNESCO-MAB Ukraine is coordinating the scientific and organizing measures concerning realization of the second phase of the UNESCO-JFIT Project “Biodiversity and Climate Change Interactions Learning from the West Polesie Transboundary Biosphere Reserve” in Ukraine. Joint research activities of the Ukrainian experts together with their Polish, Romanian, Slovak, Russian, Belarusian and Moldavian colleagues on biodiversity preservation and sustainable development in transboundary regions of the Eastern Carpathians, the Danube Delta, the West Polesie, the Desna basin, and the steppe zone of Ukraine were carried out. On the instructions of the National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO members of UNESCO-MAB Ukraine have participated in the number of international events and activities, in particular, sessions of the UNESCO General Conferences, International Coordinating Council, international meeting “EuroMaB” and other international conferences, workshops, seminars. UNESCO-MAB Ukraine provided the participation of scientists from research institutions and biosphere reserves of Ukraine in the preparation of the scientifically-founded proposals regarding a number of legal instruments in the field of environmental protection of Ukraine as well as the proceedings of international conferences and consultations. 3

In the closest perspective scientific efforts will be directed at providing Ukraine’s transition to the principles of sustainable development and further dissemination of the sustainable development principles in the state, the elaboration the scientific and applied aspects of rational use of the nature resource potential under regional climate change. Over the report period UNESCO-MAB-Ukraine paid significant attention to the implementation of the Madrid Action Plan (MAP) in Ukraine. All in all it should be stressed that biosphere reserves of Ukraine (BRs of Ukraine) participate in the realization of 31 targets and 33 actions of MAP. In the action area E.1 “Cooperation, Management and Communication” the actions 1.2, 1.4, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 5.1, 6.1. 8.1, 10.1, 10.2 have been fulfilled. So, the geographic and information system with database available to all internet-servers was created. The Common Strategy on preservation and ecological use of nature heritage in the territories of Belarus-Poland-Ukraine borders “Three Polesies” for 2007-2013 was elaborated and published. During 2009-2010 the BRs staff prepared more than 400 scientific materials that were published in various national and regional journals and newspapers of different levels (regional, national, international), particularly on the topic of networking. BRs of Belarus, Poland and Ukraine exchange scientific information, realize ecological, educational and propaganda activities together with mass media, local population, public organizations and other target groups. The information related to various aspects of BRs activity is promoted through mass media: live broadcasts were prepared within the two last years by TV channels “Rada”, “1+1”, ICTV, «Novyi Kanal», «Tonis», «The First National». BRs also manage their own web sites, annual journals and newsletters. BRs cooperate with National Ecological and Cultural Center, Ukrainian public organization “National Ecological Center of Ukraine”, public ecological organization “Lagoon”, Association of Ukrainian Fishermen and others. BRs take part in the implementation of the projects GEF “Development of the Ecological Corridor in Polesie”, “Enhancing Management and Financial Sustainability of the National System of the Nature Reserving Territories in Ukraine”, “Ecological Education of Children and Youth Aiming at Sustainable Development of Steppe Black Sea Coasts”. It is worth mentioning that the ВRs activity is realized within several international conventions, namely, the (Ramsar, 1971), the Bonn Convention (Bonn, 1979), the Bern Convention (Bern, 1999), Convention on Biodiversity Conservation (Rio-de-Janeiro, 1992), and the World Heritage Convention (Paris, 1972). All BRs have management plans, Scientific and Technical Boards which consist of the representatives of curator Institute, Regional Department on nature preservation, bodies of local self-government, land users, representatives of the public organization. 4

In the action area Е.2 “Zonation – Linking Functions to Space” actions 13.1, 13.4, 14.1 have been fulfilled. In particular, BRs have functional zoning for the whole areas with the optimization of the territorial structure according to the requirements of the Statutory Framework of the World Network оf Biosphere Reserves and the Seville Strategy, and which includes 4 zones: core, buffer, anthropogenic landscapes and regulated protection. The project on field demarcation of boundaries is also being implemented by BRs. All external borders of the reserves, within which BRs’ administration is a direct manager, are identified and marked. The lands managed by other land users are being further demarcated. Scientific conferences, seminars on the issues of preservation and sustainable management of the nature complexes are held regularly. In the action area Е.3 “Science and Capacity Enhancement” the actions 15.1, 15.2, 15.3, 16.1, 16.2, 16.3, 19.1, 21.1, 22.1, 24.1 are being realized. BRs systematically register the themes of the fundamental and applied research in the Ukrainian Institute of scientific, technical and economic information. BRs’ scientists are working on a complex scientific topic “Nature Chronicles”, which implies permanent monitoring of a BR’s status and ecosystem dynamics. The complex scientific report based on the results of this research is published annually (the subsequent volume of the “Nature Chronicles”). Apart from that, scientists from numerous external research institutions, both national and international, conduct their research. Their scientific reports are also submitted to the administration of the above Institute. BRs participate in the European working group which studies the Mediterranean species, cooperate with Holland ornithological observatory, take part in the realization of the Ukrainian-Swiss project “Institutional cooperation”, Ukrainian-Romanian project on improvement of anti-flood protection and stabilization of natural environment within the Ukrainian-Romanian segment of the Tiszsa River, a project on strategic management planning for the Carpathian Biosphere Reserve jointly with the Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development funded by the Federal German Ecological Fund DBU, a project aiming at optimization of transboundary management of the Ukrainian-Slovak World Natural Heritage site “Primeval beech forests of the Carpathians” with regard of the perspective to extend it by means of the 5 German clusters. Activities within the aforesaid projects were also directed at the implementation of several provisions of the Seville Strategy and MAP. Numerous booklets, educational books, photograph albums devoted the BRs’ activities were published. Ecological and educational centers, museums and visit centers are being established at the reserves. The BRs’ staffs conduct joint scientific research together with research institutions, universities and academies. There are regular student exchanges from numerous higher educational establishments of Ukraine and from abroad (Kyiv National University, the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, 5

Lviv Forest Technical University, Lviv National University, Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development, Brno University etc.). In the action area Е.4 “Partnerships” the actions 25.1, 25.3, 27.1, 28.1, 28.2, 29.1, 30.2, 31.1 are being worked out. In this respect it should be mentioned that during the last 2 years the administration of Shatskyi biosphere reserve signed 87 agreements with recreation centers concerning payment for the ecological services, and the Danube Delta biosphere reserve signed 31 agreements respectively. BRs have financial support from World Wild Nature Fund, governments of Norway, Germany within the framework of the international programs. BRs provide the ecosystem services to tourism establishments, there are information centers for the visitors, network of the ecological tourism routes and ecological educational paths. Cooperation programs concerning ecological education and tourism, scientific, nature conservation as well as administrative and organizational issues. Agreements between BRs and relevant regional hydrometeorological centers were signed and fulfilled.