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 December, 2009 News from The WILD Foundation Vol. 13, Issue 4, ISSN 1939-2656
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December E-Leaf
WILD9 is a Success!
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The practical results for wilderness and people
were many and varied, and just as important was the shared sense of
enthusiasm and hope at
WILD9, the 9th World Wilderness Congress (6-13 November 2009, Merida, Mexico). Thank you for being a
part of this globally important gathering, either in person or in
spirit!
With 1800 delegates from 50 countries and over 10,000 online participants from 100 countries, WILD9
brought together leaders, communities and partners from around the world
to focus on the most imperative environmental issues of our time,
especially how protecting wilderness averts climate change and supports
human well-being. The results - 44 targeted resolutions and
many outcomes, listed below.
This is why I congratulate The WILD
Foundation for three decades of tireless efforts, because thanks to you
we know there is a direct relationship between wilderness protection and
curbing global warming," President of Mexico, Felipe Calderon at WILD9
Opening Ceremony, 6 November 2009.
While WILD9 was a huge success, pushing ahead with this
ambitious global agenda in a time of global financial recession has
impacted both The WILD Foundation and our partners in Mexico, Unidos para la Conservacion. We hope that you will consider a
contribution to WILD9, supporting the great outcomes and assisting us in
pursuing the ambitious goals set during WILD9.
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 The Message from Merida: An
international call to action with specific policy guidelines to integrate
wilderness and biodiversity conservation into the global climate change
strategy. Join the 70 organizations and 400 individuals who have signed-onto the Message from Merida >
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The
first international agreement on wilderness conservation, initiated by WILD, announced by President Calderon at WILD9 and signed by the governments of Mexico, Canada and the
US.
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Launching the first-ever Corporate Commitment to Wilderness, a
results-orientated initiative signed by 15 corporations.
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New protected areas in Mexico, plus the intention to create the
first marine wilderness areas in the US, a commitment to significantly
increase coverage in the Yucatan, Mexico, and a private sector
commitment to protect 50,000 hectares in the Carpathian Mountains
(Romania).
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 Local outreach to inspire conservation action, including a project with
local charities to create 20 jaguar sculptures which now decorate the city
of Merida. The jaguars were painted by disadvantaged youth from Merida
and will be auctioned to raise money for the youth programs and awareness for
wild-nature.
See the jaguars >
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Wilderness and Water - Announcements by the Government
of Mexico including:
- A new national standard starting in
2010, that sets minimum standards of adequate water flow in rivers to support
wild lands and natural systems; and,
- A national inventory of wetlands to
determine the current state of these ecosystems, learn about the goods and
services it provides and consider measures for conservation and sustainable
management.
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Launch
of the Marine Wilderness Collaborative (MWC) to join stakeholders in a
consensus-driven process to define the term "marine wilderness" and set common
objectives for the management of marine wilderness protected areas.
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Extensive use of
new communications tools, including live-video, blogging and more to expand the global wilderness community.
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 Engaging young leaders
on substantive issues of wilderness, biodiversity and climate change.
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Creation of six new Intergovernmental Working Groups involving US, Canadian, Mexican, and other government agencies to stimulate ongoing
collaboration on conservation matters concerning Payments for Ecosystem
Services, Marine Wilderness, Recreation & Visitor Experience, Fire
Management, Wildlife & Biodiversity, and Public-Private Partnerships.
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Government agency collaboration with NGO and
indigenous partners to strengthen peer-to-peer networks and produce
numerous targeted trainings such as the 2nd Global Wilderness Forum
for Government Agencies, Wilderness Management Training, Payments for
Ecosystem Services workshops, Climate Change Training for Protected Area
Managers, Wilderness Policy for Latin American Attorneys, Global
Wildlands Connectivity workshops, Native Lands and Wilderness
Council, Wildland Watershed Management, and more.
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 Launching the concept of wilderness as tierras silvestres
(wilderness) in Latin American public awareness, professional endeavor and
culture.
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New Sponsor! Motive Collective LLC provides environmentally responsible, affordable, high quality bags and backpacks. The bags are made of 100% recycled main body fabric, buckles and webbing. Motive Collective offers a lifetime take-back policy and donates at least one percent of their annual gross sales to support WILD's work for wilderness, wildlife and people! Check out their cool bags > |
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