Everything about Conservation International totally explained
Conservation International (CI) is a nonprofit organization headquartered in the
Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, that seeks to protect Earth's
biodiversity "hotspots," high-biodiversity wilderness areas as well as important marine regions around the globe. The group is also known for its partnerships with local
non-governmental organizations and
indigenous peoples.
CI was founded in 1987 by Spencer Beebe and now has a staff of more than 900 employees. Its work occurs in more than 40 countries, primarily in developing nations in
Africa,
Asia,
Oceania, and the Central and South American
rainforests.
Mission statement
Conservation International's mission is to conserve the Earth's living natural heritage, our global biodiversity, and to demonstrate that human societies are able to live harmoniously with nature.
Administration
Renowned primatologist, herpetologist and wildlife conservationist
Russell A. Mittermeier has served as Conservation International's president since 1989.
Peter A. Seligmann is chairman and CEO.
Its board of directors includes prominent names such as
Intel co-founder
Gordon Moore, actor
Harrison Ford,
Queen Noor of Jordan, former
Starbucks CEO Orin Smith, Rob Walton of
Wal-Mart, and media mogul
Barry Diller.
In addition, the non-profit hosts a series of events around the country throughout the year with high-profile keynote speakers such as Dr.
Jared Diamond,
E.O. Wilson, Dr.
Jeffrey Sachs,
Thomas L. Friedman,
Bill Bryson,
Wade Davis, and even
Jimmy Buffett.
Projects and achievements
In December
2005, as part of the organization's Rapid Assessment Program (RAP), scientists from Conservation International surveyed a previously unexplored area of the
Foja Mountains in
Papua,
Indonesia. They found 20 previously unknown
frog species, four new
butterflies, five new
palms and a new species of
honeyeater bird. The researchers also found the
golden-mantled Tree-kangaroo -- a species not previously known to live in Indonesia, and hunted nearly to extinction elsewhere -- and took the first
photographs of
Berlepsch's six-wired bird of paradise. The area was so isolated that many of the animals they found had no fear of humans. Conservation International's findings were widely reported throughout the world in February
2006 including
Nightline, The NBC Nightly News, and the
New York Times.
CI is actively seeking a
United Nations General Assembly moratorium on high seas
bottom trawling through their participation on the Steering Group of the
Deep Sea Conservation Coalition.
CI has recently endorsed the
Forests Now Declaration, which calls for new market based mechanisms to protect tropical forests.
Defying Nature's End: The African Context
During June 20-24,
2006, Conservation International organized a major symposium in
Madagascar, one of the planet's most important
biodiversity hotspots. The symposium, titled "Defying Nature's End: The African Context", aimed to help African nations prosper by protecting their natural habitats and brought together more than 450 international representatives from governments, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, and local African communities.
The symposium also presented the latest research on links between the environment, poverty and health, and new strategies on resource management and governance to realize the greatest benefits from nature.
This symposium produced a final document called the “Madagascar Declaration,” which CI’s Olivier Langrand read at the ceremony. Subsequent speakers including
Jeffrey Sachs, head of the
U.N. Millennium Project, CI President
Russ Mittermeier and Prime Minister
Jacques Sylla all heralded the declaration as a catalyst for making biodiversity conservation a pillar of development policies.
Discovery of new species
As part of a Conservation International survey, scientists reported they'd discovered 52 new species (including 24 new types of
fish). Among these, they found (and photographed) a bottom-dweller
shark that walks on its fins as well as a praying mantis-like
shrimp, while exploring a region of water near Indonesia's Papua province (known as the
Bird's Head Seascape or Asia's
Coral Triangle). Conservation International (CI) and the
Indonesia Institute of Science (LIPI) discovered 2 putative new
mammals upon visit of the
Foja Mountains in June 2007: a
Cercartetus pygmy possum, one of the world's smallest
marsupials, and a Mallomys
giant rat (5 times the size of a city rat) - found in Indonesia's Papua in 2005.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Conservation International'.
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