IUCN

Forest management in Ghana is in a transition period. This report looks at the historical background and forest condition today, summarises a recent botanical survey, and offers recommendations for a new management regime given the seriously threatened state of many forest reserves.

Published by IUCN in collaboration with UNEP INFOTERRA, the Sourcebook seeks to foster communication with IUCN, UNEP and WWF offices and related sources of information. Includes bibliographies of "best" books, periodicals, videos and some electronic resources.

This very first directory of wetlands of one of the most arid zones on earth is intended to increase awareness among decision makers and planners of the consequences of wetland loss and degradation. It will also assist responsible authorities to identify new sites for listing under the Ramsar Convention. The directory consists of a series of national reports describing the principal wetlands in 13 countries.

The result of the work of the Kenya Indigenous Forest Conservation programme, this report provides a summary of the existing information about Kenya's indigenous forests. Covers geographical background; assessment of the biodiversity, environmental services, and wood products functions and values; population pressures; utilisation; economic value; policy; legislation; management guidelines and criteria for management planning of such forests.

Limits to expansion of protected area systems underline the importance of seeking new ways to conserve biodiversity. There are many examples where traditional rural communities have shown their capacity to maintain high biological and cultural diversity.

Paradise on Earth is the result of a collaboration between IUCN and Harper-MacRae Publishing (now World Heritage Publishing Pty. Ltd.) with support from UNESCO and WCMC. The book includes more than 350 colour photographs which accompany detailed descriptions of each natural site inscribed on the World Heritage List.

Biodiversity is essential for sustainable development, and cultures from ancient times to the present day have exploited biodiversity. With the advent of scientific breeding, new plant varieties have been developed. Plant breeders are dependent upon the availability of a large pool of diverse genetic material represented by local races and wild relatives. Without the ability to draw from a diverse genetic reservoir, further improvement may not be possible.

This report analyses the factors which motivate land use by rural populations and provides a context for any policy or strategy which addresses natural resource conservation in the Sahel. The author suggests that production systems in the Sahel have reached or even exceeded their capacity to respond to the needs of a growing population and further that development aid has only had a negligible impact on the trend to over exploit.

Presents research results on LMEs including identification of the major driving forces causing large-scale changes in biomass yields and health; development of ecosystem component models; and monitoring and assessment strategies and techniques for measuring changing states of LMEs. Covers contributions from 68 marine scientists from 14 countries.