Ramsar Oceania Meeting Report Released

May 2008: The report of the regional preparatory meeting of Oceania parties, which took place in Samoa on 10-11 April 2008, has been released. Workshop participants discussed the draft resolution on climate change prepared by the Ramsar Scientific and Technical Review Panel in advance of the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Ramsar Convention (COP10), scheduled to take place from 28 October to 4 November 2008, in Changwon, Republic of Korea. In relation to the draft resolution on climate change, Australia called for a caucus of Pacific member States before COP10.

New Zealand stated that a strong stance by Ramsar on the climate issue would provide a powerful message. IUCN stressed the impact of climate change on coral reefs, which are an important source of livelihood in the Pacific region, and Wetlands International Oceania underlined the close connection between freshwater estuarine and marine systems in high islands of the Pacific, as well as the link between environmental management and public health. The key messages and recommendations from the meeting will be highlighted at the thirty-seventh meeting of the Ramsar Standing Committee, which will be held in Gland, Switzerland, in June 2008. [Report of the meeting]