International Symposium on Biodiversity Conservation Corridors Initiative
Holiday Inn Bangkok, Thailand : 27-28 April 2006
Post Workshop Statement | Objectives| Participants | Photo Gallery
Biodiversity corridors experts and implementers convened on 27-28 April 2006 in Bangkok, Thailand during the first International Symposium on Biodiversity Conservation Corridors Initiative (BCI). The symposium was organized by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE).
The symposium was structured around four themes:
- Ecosystems connectivity
- Local livelihoods
- Climate change
- Sustainable financing
BCI is the flagship component of the GMS Core Environment Program (CEP), which was designed to address the immediate and long-term stresses that rapid economic growth would otherwise have on the environment and natural resources of the region.
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- Share experience gained and lessons learned by implementers and practitioners of biodiversity corridors outside the GMS with implementers of the Core Environment Program
- Review pilot site proposals of the GMS BCI in the light of lessons learned and experience shared
- If necessary and possible, make adjustments of implementation framework of the GMS BCI based on recommendations of the symposium
- Identify potential long term monitoring outlook for the GMS BCI.
Read the BCI symposium agenda.
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Participants at the symposium included members of the GMS Working Group on Environment, delegates from Cambodia, the People's Republic of China, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam, observers from the CEP's development partners, biodiversity corridor experts and implementers, and other representatives from nongovernment organizations and the academe.
A total of 130 participants attended the symposium.
Dr. Monthip Sritana Tabucanon (left), Deputy Permanent Secretary, MONRE and Mr. Arjun Thapan, Deputy Director General, Southeast Asia Department, ADB, expressed their hope that the symposium would provide the best guidance on how to implement the BCI in a manner that enhances human and environmental welfare in the GMS and beyond.
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SEAE Director Urooj Malik stressed that "results of the CEP should reflect not only the improvement in the environment of the subregion but also be seen in the positive impact in terms of poverty reduction at the BCI pilot sites."
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Symposium facilitator Jeremy Carew-Reid encouraged open discussion about biodiversity-related problems facing the subregion.
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Panel 1 led by Markku Kanninen of the Center for International Forestry Research discussed ecosystems connectivity issues.
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Panel 2 led by environmental economist Paul Steele talked about livelihoods.
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Panel 3 led by Frank Murray of the Murdoch University tackled climate change.
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Panel 4 led by Katherine Warner of IUCN debated sustainable financing issues.
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| Contacts |
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Javed Hussain Mir
Senior Natural Resource Specialist
Agriculture, Environment, and Natural Resources Division
Asian Development Bank
Tel +63 2 632 6909
Fax +63 2 636 2231
GMS Environment Operations Center (EOC)
23rd Floor, The Offices at Central World
999/9 Rama I Road, Pathumwan
Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Tel +66 2 207 4444
Fax +66 2 207 4400 |
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