IUCN Calls for Action in World Conservation

The 15th General Assembly was held at the Town Hall in Christchurch, New Zealand, October 11-23, 1981.

The 15th General Assembly of IUCN, the world conservation orga- nization, concluded its eight day sit- ting in Christchurch, New Zealand by passing 29 resolutions aimed at promoting international and national conservation measures and by approv- ing an action programme for the coming three years.

The resolutions call for greater protection of the Antarctic includ- ing adequate assessment of environ- mental risks and adoption of proper safeguards prior to making mineral regimes operational in that region; increased emphasis on renewable energy resources; more research on genetic resources and greater effort to save endangered species such as whales.

The IUCN General Assembly, at- tended by 440 delegates from 62 na- tions urged international organiza- tions to give practical attention to

conservation needs of the South Pacific Region and the Australian government to give full protection to the Great Barrier Reef by declaring the whole region a Marine Park. The IUCN called on the Tasmanian gov- ernment to extend national park sta- tus to the remaining South West wilderness and to refrain from further hydroelectric, forest or mineral in- cursions in the region. The General Assembly voted for environmental research on the effects of deepsea mining and for close scrutiny of pro- jects resulting in tropical rainforest clearing. A closer working link be- tween resource conservation and fam- ily planning was strongly supported. The General Assembly also called upon all governments to give rull ef- fect to international agreements con- tributing to the maintenance of peace and the reduction of global arma. merits. Particular emphasis was placed on appeals to development agencies to integrate conservation into their development projects.

In addition to the 29 resolutions, 42 action points were referred to the IUCN Council for implementation. These action points included measures to conserve the Sinai peninsula, con- servation efforts related to the rhino- ceros, the African elephant and the flamingo in the Southern Caribbean, and to specific tropical forest regions.

The theme of the General Assem- bly was titled 'The World Conserva- tion Strategy in Action', and the reso- lutions adopted reflected the need to further these objectives. The General Assembly requested that the IUCN Secretariat monitor and evaluate ac- tion taken globally to promote the aims of the World Conservation Stra- tegy.

The Director-General of IUCN, Dr. Lee Talbot, said that the focus of this General Assembly was on the central issue of how to reconcile envi- ronmental conservation and sustain- able economic development.

"I am very pleased with the sup- portive atmosphere which permitted distinguished scientists and other ex- perts from all over the world to pro- duce a common action plan for world conservation" he said.

IUCN (News Release) Gland, Switzerland.

Conference Announcements International Conference

on Environmental Education, New Delhi, India, December 1981

This conference will be held in New Delhi, India, during the period 16-20 December 1981. It is being organized by the Indian Environment Society and the Department of the Environment, in association with a number of National, Intemational and UN Agencies. It will be under the Patronage of Shri C. P. N. Singh, Minister of State for Environment and Science and Technology. The Chairman of the Organizing Commit- tee is Dr M. S. Wwaminathan, FNA, FRS.

The aims of the conference are: - T o stimulate regional and inter-

national cooperation in the field of environmental education.

- To identify the steps necessary for implementation of environmental education programmes--based on the UNESCO/UNEP recommenda- tions of Belgrade, Bangkok, Tbflisi and other regional environmental education workshops held in vari- ous regions.

- T o prepare action plans for en- vironmental education program-

mes at national and international levels.

- To consider ways in which the ex- perience of one country or one region can be used in programmes of other countries.

- To consider the ways in which non- governmental and governmental organizations and UN agencies can participate in the implementation of environmental education pro- grammes.

- To identify materials which can be used in training and curriculum programmes.

Programme:

Session 1: Significance and impor- tance of environmental education. Sessions 2 and 3: Role of education in generating awareness of environ-

The Environmentalist, 1 (198 I) 248-250 © Elsevier Sequoia S.A., Lausanne - Printed in The Netherlands