From 17 to 25 November, the World Conservation Congress (WCC) is taking place in Bangkok, Thailand. WCC is the general assembly of IUCN members, which takes place every three to four years, but has also become one of the most important gatherings of conservation specialists in the world. The Congress combines the business of the Union with technical conservation fora and provides an opportunity for the sharing of information and experience among IUCN's worldwide constituency of members, stakeholders and partner organizations.
UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre is participating actively in the Congress. Two technical workshops are organized to discuss the use of the World Heritage brand to generate support for local tourism enterprises and how World Heritage is contributing to forest conservation and sustainable development. UNESCO is also launching a new partnership with IUCN for science, conservation and sustainability.
You can now access a film featuring Professor Chamaeleo, Ambassador at Large for Diversity, in which he urges everyone to unite and act for the conservation of biodiversity. The film was used to open the IUCN WCC. Prof. Chamaeleo’s compelling appeal to humanity is at http://www.diversity.info.
The production of the film was made possible with support from: Bellagio Forum for Sustainable Development; Convention on Biological Diversity; IUCN; Shell Foundation; The Global Environment Facility; and UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre.