Kazakhstan names large inland delta

The government of Kazakhstan has designated as its ninth Wetland of International Importance the important Ili River Delta and South Lake Balkhash (976,630 hectares, 45°35'52"N 074°44'17"E) in the southern part of the country. Read more here. [27/01/12]

New Ramsar Sites on Corsica and Île de Mayotte

The government of France has designated its two latest Wetlands of International Importance, bringing that Party's total Ramsar Sites to 38, covering 3,289,306 hectares: La Vasière des Badamiers (Île de Mayotte - océan indien) (115 haectares, 12°47'S 045°16'E), on the Indian Ocean island of Mayotte, and Tourbière de Moltifao (33 hectares, 42°28'52"N 009°09'13"E), the largest active raised bog on the island of Corsica. Details and photos here. [27/01/2012]

“Bird watching instead of bird poaching” in the Hutovo Blato Nature Park (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

The Ramsar Secretariat is pleased to report that EuroNatur, a non-profit foundation for the conservation of European nature heritage, has set up a project with the managers of Hutovo Blato Nature Park, a site on the Ramsar List, to stop bird poaching on the site. More [26/01/12]

Welcome to Nury Furlán, our new Intern / Assistant Advisor for the Americas region

The Secretariat is pleased to announce that Ms Nury Furlán from Guatemala has arrived to work with the Secretariat team as the new Intern / Assistant Advisor for the Americas region. She replaces Ms Sofia Méndez who is returning to Honduras after two years at Ramsar.

Nury has a first degree in Forest Engineering and has recently completed a Masters degree in Geomatics and Natural Resource Evaluation at the Istituto Agronomico per l’Oltremare in Florence, Italy. She has worked most recently as a land cover photographic interpreter at the Global Land Cover Network division of FAO in Florence. As well as bringing these technical skills, Nury will be working in her mother tongue, Spanish, and in English to support the Americas region. Español [26/01/12]

Romania's newest Wetlands of International Importance

The Secretariat of the Convention on Wetlands is delighted to report that Romania, which is generously preparing to play host to the next meeting of the Ramsar Conference of the Contracting Parties in July 2012, has increased its number of Ramsar Sites to 8, covering a surface area of 824,897 hectares. Summary descriptions and photographs of Comana Natural Park (Parcul Natural Comana) (24,963 hectares, 44°09'N 026°09'E) and Poiana Stampei Peat Bog (Tinovul Poiana Stampei) (640 hectares, 47°17'28"N, 025°05'57"E) can be found here. [20/01/2012]

Estonia names three new Ramsar Sites

The Ramsar Secretariat is very pleased to announce that Estonia has designated three extensive mire complexes as its newest Wetlands of International Importance, bringing that country's Ramsar total to 16 sites covering an area of 262,998 hectares. The Convention presently lists a total of 1,974 Ramsar Sites, with an area of 190,763,717 hectares. Ramsar's Assistant Advisor for Europe, Kati Wenzel, has prepared brief summary descriptions of the new sites, based upon the Ramsar Information Sheets submitted with the designations, and the photographs are by Agu Leivits -- here. [20/01/2012]

Who's Where?

 
SG Anada Tiéga is in Manila, Philippines, to attend the Global Conference on Land-Oceans Connections Interactions from 22 to 25 January. [23/01/12]

Sandra Hails, CEPA Programme Officer, will be attending a workshop for CEPA Focal Points for the NorBalWet Ramsar Regional Initiative from 23-26 January, in Helsinki, Finland. [23/01/12]

Lew Young, Senior Regional Advisor for Asia-Oceania will be in Thailand, Myanmar and Bangladesh from 30 January to 11 February. In Myanmar, he will be attending the World Wetlands Day celebrations and a workshop to prepare for the designation of the country’s second Ramsar Site. In Bangladesh and Thailand, he will be meeting with the Ramsar Administrative Authority and other partners to update them on the preparations for COP11 and other national implementation issues. [26/01/12]

Yesterday's News

Reminder: Contribute to our next photo mosaic!

Last year, the Secretariat launched an online gallery showcasing the beauty of wetlands in the world. Send your wetland-related pictures (maximum 3 pictures) by 20 January 2012. The Secretariat will select the best picture as the cover photo for the photo mosaic, to be populated on 31 January 2012. The other pictures will constitute the smaller parts of the mosaic cover photos and of course will feed the photo gallery.

Visit www.40thramsar.org/contribute.php and send us your best wetland-related pictures. [19/01/12]

Vacancy at Ramsar Secretariat for Intern/Assistant for Asia/Oceania Region

The Ramsar Secretariat welcomes applications for the position of Intern/Assistant Advisor for the Asia/Oceania region, a 12-month posting (possibly extendable up to 18 months) in the Ramsar Secretariat in Switzerland to begin on 1 June 2012. The deadline for applications is 16 February 2012.

IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, provides administrative services for the Ramsar Convention, and more information and online application for this post is available on the IUCN website at: https://hrms.iucn.org/iresy/index.cfm?event=vac.show&vacId=327

New IUCN vacancy: Programme Officer, Aichi Biodiversity Targets and Key Biodiversity Areas, Biodiversity Conservation Group

The Programme Officer will report to and work closely with the Global Director, Biodiversity Conservation Group, given that this work spans the work of all constituent Programmes of the Group, and indeed will involve working with IUCN globally. The incumbent will also work extremely closely with the Programme Officer, Conservation Planning, based in the Global Species Programme, Cambridge, UK and also with the joint IUCN SSC (Species Survival Commission) - WCPA (World Commission on Protected Areas) Protected Areas and Biodiversity task force to support the technical deliverables of the position on sites of global biodiversity conservation significance.

To see the vacancy announcement, please use this link:
https://hrms.iucn.org/iresy/index.cfm?event=vac.show&vacId=325

New dynamic and interactive tools to showcase Ramsar Sites!

A new attractive and interactive way of presenting the data of the List of Wetlands of International Importance has recently been added to the Ramsar Sites Information Service. Dynamic maps showing the number and surface area of Ramsar Sites by country, the countries that have ratified the Convention or the growth in number of Contracting Parties since 1971 are now available online. Would you like to display data for a specific region only? It’s up to you! The information you need is just a few clicks away. More | français [12/01/2012]

Vacancies at Wetlands International (The Netherlands)

Wetlands International is seeking to recruit two officers for its communication and advocacy team of 5 people for their headquarters in the Netherlands.

1) A Communications Officer with a focus on website management, writing and editing offline and online products

2) A Communications and Advocacy Officer at more senior level. This involves advocacy at global conventions and strategic communications.

More details on www.wetlands.org/jobs and http://www.wetlands.org/Aboutus/JobsVacancies/tabid/71/Default.aspx

Indonesia's newest Ramsar Site

The Secretariat is delighted to announce that Indonesia has designated Pulau Rambut Wildlife Reserve (90 hectares, 05°58'28"S 106°41'35"E) as it sixth Wetland of International Importance. Pulau Rambut Wildlife Reserve (90 hectares, 05°58'28"S 106°41'35"E), located on a small atoll reef island northwest of Jakarta City, has a tropical climate and comprises several wetland habitat types, such as coral reefs, intertidal flats, mangrove forests, lagoons and seasonal freshwater marshes. Read more. [09/01/2012]

Position vacancy at Regional Centre in Ramsar, Iran

Here is an announcement from the Regional Training and Research Centre for Central and Western Asia (RRC-CWA) in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Please note that the RRC-CWA has been endorsed by the Conference of the Parties as a "Regional Initiative endorsed as operating within the framework of the Ramsar Convention and considered appropriate for funding in 2006-2011", in the "training and capacity building" category, and has been allocated continued funding support until 2011, among other Regional Initiatives. It is not, however, a legal or administrative part of the Ramsar Convention or Secretariat. Read the announcement [09/01/02]

U.S. Department of  State and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service launches a World Wetlands Day photo contest 

Showcase the beauty of wetlands along with your talent! Submit your best photos  to a World Wetlands Day photo celebration under this year’s theme “Wetlands  Tourism: A Great Experience,” sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in partnership with the Ramsar Convention  Secretariat. From Jan. 3-20, 2012 upload your best photo(s) to our Flickr site  in one of four wetlands and tourism-related categories: wildlife, landscapes,  plants, and tourists (one per category per participant). ALL are invited to  mark your favorite photo in each category through Jan. 22. The top photos in  each category will be showcased on U.S. Department of State, U.S. Fish and  Wildlife Service, and the Ramsar Convention Secretariat and its International  Organization Partners’ websites and social media platforms around the world on  World Wetlands Day, Feb. 2, 2012. Visit the State Department's Facebook page here and find out more about the photo competition and how you can enter here . View the competition flyer here in English, French, and Spanish [04/01/12]