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IWMC
World Conservation Trust |
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Message from
the Editor: A Voice for Sustainable Use
Dr. R. O. Bailey
IWMC eNewsletter Editor |
The
single most valuable function, role and asset of IWMC World Conservation Trust
is its unwavering global voice for sustainable use of the earth’s resources
and the preservation of the cultures and traditions that depend upon them. In
this age of mass media, electronic interconnectivity and cultural
homogenization, this modest voice with its simple message, based on reasoned
scientific management, and traditional indigenous knowledge, often stands alone
against the background roar of animal rights and protectionist world-views. Yet
the simple truth and values conveyed in the concept of sustainable use has been
with humankind since the very beginning. It is a concept that intuitively sits
well with most people, they understand it and support it once they know it. This
is the evolutionary or natural equity of sustainable use.
How can a small voice with a powerful message be heard?
This is the challenge facing IWMC – World Conservation Trust and my
particular task as editor of this newsletter. Our goal is to build this voice
for sustainable use, to make it a more useful and powerful tool for sustainable
users, and to increase the volume and reach of the messages. And it all starts
with you, the reader of the IWMC eNewsletter.
You dear reader, are the global hope for preserving the human legacy of
sustainable use. You are the advocates needed to promote and defend the
cultures, traditions and values of living in true harmony with nature, in a
confusing and
increasingly distorted world. In all corners of the planet, IWMC readers are the
reservoir of knowledge, experience, the keepers of the science and the passion
for the truth and values that are embodied in the legacy of sustainable use.
As the new editor of the newsletter, I intend to engage these strengths and
passion in building the voice for sustainable use.
We can start by considering the newsletter as more than just a bulletin
board, but as a strategic asset for achieving IWMC goals for sustainable use. In
the months to come we will outline new ideas and directions for the publication,
and that means IWMC needs to hear your voice. Please continue to forward
information for the newsletter. If you have not contributed in the past, now is
a great time to start. urge all readers to become vitally involved in creating
an international publication for sustainable use that connects a global
community of supporters, provides useful information and tools for conserving
resources and cultures, and is a powerful, expanding voice for the scientific
management of resources around the world. 
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