Patricio Robles Gil, WILD Trustee and a founding member of the the International League of Conservation Photographers (ILCP), lead a group of ILCP and local photographers to Balandra Bay in Baja, California to visually record and communicate the conservation values of this threatened area.  This was the ILCP’s second RAVE (Rapid Assessment Visual Expedition), following the first and very successful RAVE in El Triunfo Biosphere in Southern Mexico.  An international journalist accompanied the Baja expedition, and upon completion presented the images of Balandra to a group of developers preparing to establish a large resort on this pristine bay.  They quickly saw the issues involved, and further meetings were held with national politicians. We await the news of their decision…can we save Balandra? {Photo by Patricio Robles Gil}

Phase I of our Mali Elephant Project came to a successful conclusion in January in a series of workshops in Mali.  The workshops focused on transferring knowledge and technology to better protect these threatened elephants.  Our work, in cooperation with Iain Douglas Hamilton and Save the Elephants (Kenya) and la Direction Nationale de la Conservation de la Nature (Mali), resulted in a report, maps, recommendations, and more knowledge on the unusual migration these elephants take as they try to survive in the Sahel, south of Timbucto. {Photo by Carlton Ward}

As we prepare for Phase II - Social Marketing and Outreach - you can view the Phase I report (English and French versions) coordinated and produced by our team leader, Dr. Susan Canney.

Feedback is needed!  The draft “Guidelines for Applying the IUCN Protected Area Management Categories” are now available and feedback is needed for further development of this important document.  The IUCN (World Conservation Union) will use these guidelines to work with governments, NGOs and communities to create new protected areas around the world.  As founder and co-chair of the Wilderness Task Force within the World Conservation Union, WILD and its Wild Planet Project have been centrally involved in developing the guidelines.  Within the next few months, the guidelines will be further revised and field-tested prior to discussion at a Steering Committee meeting in Cape Town (April, 2008). 

Wild 9 - Feel, Think, Act!  The excitement for WILD 9, the 9th World Wilderness Congress, is building.  WILD and its partners (Unidos para la Conservacion and others) in Mexico and in many countries are working around the clock to develop the program and conservation objectives.  A global process, WILD 9 will also emphasize Latin American issues, opportunities and solutions, and the entire proceedings will be bi-lingual (a first for the WWC!).  To learn more about WILD 9 and to submit your intention to register, visit the WILD website.

Keep an eye out for several new publications from WILD this year.  Due out in March is A Handbook on International Wilderness Law and Policy, the first ever comprehensive guide to wilderness laws internationally.  This book provides a detailed "how-to" guide for conservation professionals interested in developing new wilderness laws or policies in their countries.  It also provides the most current information for practitioners in countries where wilderness laws and policies are already in place, but who are interested in learning from other approaches and experiences.  Look for the availability of this book on WILD's online store. 

We welcome Dr. Chad Dawson and Mr. Michael McBride to the WILD Board of Directors.  Mike (a long-time friend and trustee of WILD) and his wife Diane are the founders/owners of The Kachemak Bay Wilderness Lodge near Homer, Alaska.  He is also the founder of the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies, a former trustee of the Nature Conservancy, former member of the Board of Directors of The Smithsonian Institution, a renowned story-teller, a yoga instructor, and the list goes on!  Dr. Dawson is the Managing Editor of the International Journal of Wilderness and Professor of Recreation Resource Management at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY.  Chad’s experience and knowledge of resource and wilderness management are great assets to the Board.  Read more about Mike, Chad and all of WILD's directors.

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