Guidelines

Produced by an IUCN team working with the PNG Department of Environment and Conservation, this report underlines the urgent need to initiate appropriate strategic planning for regional development well before the cessation of current mining activities in the Fly River catchment area.

This report draws on lessons learned from observations made at seven case study sites, all of which permit economic activities, especially recreation, that are not harmful to the biological values and natural functions of the area. There is now a need to translate these experiences into policy instruments. The guidelines, summarised in some 20 pages, offer sound and well-documented advice on how to proceed.

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.

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.

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.

The threatened species categories used in Red Data Books and Red Lists have been in place for almost 30 years. The Red Data Book categories provide an easily and widely understood method for highlighting those species under higher extinction risk, so as to focus attention on conservation measures designed to protect them. This document, incorporating changes recommended by IUCN members, was adopted by the IUCN Council in 1994.