Our message
to you for the New Year
As
this year, decade and century wind down and the prospects of a New Year
and New Millennium face us, we at IWMC World Conservation Trust can not
help but reflect on all we have accomplished together and all that remains
to be done. The prospects before us are quite daunting, if we think about
each. And too, there remains our continual bewilderment at those individuals
and organizations who do not seem to grasp what is at stake for the future
of the planet, the animals, the flora and humankind if the principles of
sustainable use are usurped by the willful and abusive isolationism of
non-use.
and New Millennium Both our friends and colleagues as well as the extreme NGOs profess an abiding love for nature and all its varied resources. Perhaps the single greatest difference between the passion of those who champion sustainable use and those who carry the banner of non-use is this. Nature to us is as inclusive as a warm and nurturing family. The affection we hold for the most magnificent of nature's creatures, its least in stature, and for its broad scenic vistas includes an abiding respect for and love of our fellow humans too. Without us, nature is incomplete. In that spirit, we wish all of you
peace, prosperity, and success for the New Year and may you find time in
your busy and vitally important work to have a bit of fun throughout our
time together in 21st Century. Bless us all.¨
Mitsubishi
/ Flag of Convenience
Mitsubishi Corporation, one of the leading seafood purchasers in Japan, has closed its operations to Flag of Convenience (FOC) longline tuna fishing vessels. Mitsubishi's actions form the third leg of a united Japanese front to conserve tuna by lessening fishing pressure on the world's tuna stocks. The Mitsubishi decision representing the corporate/purchaser sector joins the efforts of the Japanese government and Japanese fishing vessel owners to halt unregulated harvesting of tuna. As reported by IWMC earlier, Japan
assumed a leadership role in tuna conservation when it closed its ports
to FOC vessels and the Japanese fishing vessel owners voluntarily decommissioned
a significant percentage of the Japanese tuna fleet. The Japanese government
and fishing industry are currently negotiating with other Asian fishing
nations to not only reject FOC vessels but also to reduce their own regulated
fishing fleets.¨
IWMC 2nd SYMPOSIUM ON SUSTAINABLE USE Chengdu, China, November 22-26, 1999 CLOSING STATEMENT "A Call for International Cooperation
The planet's resources - its aquatic and terrestrial flora and fauna and its human resources - ideally coexist in a complex yet simple relationship of care, concern and mutual benefit. Unfortunately, that relationship is not always honored, maintained, or even understood. Yet, if those resources are to flourish now and for the foreseeable future, we must work to maintain that balance and restore it where it is lost. We must avoid those paths that are short or wrong sighted. We must combine the best data with effective and cooperative management schemes that provide true benefit for the oceans, the land, the skies, the plants, the animals, and for the earth's many peoples. From the richness of our presenters' collective and individual experiences, we heard the recurring idea that there is no room in true conservation for hidden or not-so-hidden political or ideological agendas. Fear and ignorance of those things we do not understand must not be allowed to lead us to condemnation and prohibition by international policies. Rather such a lack of information must challenged us to renew our quest for knowledge through research, education, and communication regarding topics such as traditional Chinese medicine or the use of animal resources by cultures in the frigid Arctic or the heat of Africa or the vastness of Asia. It must challenge us halt illegal activities that cause permanent damages to the environment such as the Flag of Convenience do to the oceans. It must challenge us to develop and always improve positive solutions to conservation problems. It must challenge us into looking carefully in the potential and risks of conservation initiatives such as breeding in captivity, aquaculture and multi-species management. This must and shall be our mission. The integrity of the earth and its inhabitants demand and deserve better than the disingenuous diet of the environmental exploiters. The planet and its resources deserve no less than the best we can bring to the important role we play as participants in the process of conserving and protecting the environment and all who dwell within. To care about nature's resources is not enough. As we continue our important work after this symposium adjourns, we must bring its findings, recommendations and conclusions to the public. That takes a certain amount of sweat, tenacity, respect and trust. That, in part, is the message we take from this conference. In part, this IWMC 2nd Symposium has provided a forum for new ideas, new relationships, and new initiatives for taking the principles of sustainable resource management and wise resource use to intergovernmental forums such as CITES, CBD, FAO and to the world itself. Thank you to the participants, not
only for their contribution but also for the success of the 2nd Symposium
and for the betterment of us all.¨
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