South Africa Home
Welcome to the World Conservation Union
in South Africa (IUCN-SA)

Map provided by Google Earth, IUCN-SA is a Country Office of the World Conservation Union (IUCN), representing the Global Secretariat in South Africa. Our office forms part of IUCN’s Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSA), based in Harare, Zimbabwe. IUCN-SA was established in 1998 in order to promote the World Conservation Union's vision of a just world that values and conserves nature in the newly democratized South Africa.

As a knowledge-based organization and a global leader in conservation, IUCN provides a platform for access to a diversity of credible and cutting edge international and local information in the fields of conservation and development. Aligning our global mandate with national priorities in South Africa, IUCN-SA's priority areas for action and engagement are: managing and restoring ecosystems; markets, trade and biodiversity; climate change and sustainable urban environments; poverty alleviation and social inequity; and environmental governance and capacity.

News

Vacancies
13 June 2006
IUCN-SA has an opening at their Pretoria office. For more information visit: Opportunities at IUCN-SA


Valli Moosa encourages film industry to stimulate environmental action

May 11
Valli Moosa, President of The World Conservation Union, urged the nature and wildlife film industry to motivate the general public to environmental action.

Movies and documentaries are one of the most powerful instruments for public enlightenment. Regardless of what else we do, if people do not want to protect the environment we will fail. Raising awareness and consciousness is absolutely vital and fundamental,” he said.

Valli Moosa opened the first-ever Wild Talk Africa Film Festival, held in Durban, South Africa last week. The booming film industry in South Africa there met with representatives from other African countries as well as some of the most famous names in nature filming, including Disney, National Geographic and the Discovery Channel.

“It is that creativity; it is that wonderful way in which you articulate real-life issues in films and documentaries that will convince more and more people that conserving the environment is the right thing to do. That we should not become blinded by statistics of growth and development,” he continued.

Moosa underlined the power of this sector of the film industry to reach the general audience with sound conservation knowledge, and that they thereby have the power to influence the highest levels of decision-making.

”We reach out to decision makers all around the word through television and film, and portray environmental issues and looming environmental disasters. And if we don’t reach out to the decision makers, we reach out to their families,” he said.

The Festival, whilst firmly grounded in the South African film community, is fast on track to become a major international platform for the wildlife film industry. It organized a range of discussions on technical developments as well as the relationship between the industry and society.

The World Conservation Union looks forward to again partner with Wild Talk for next year’s event.

More information visit:
www.wildtalkafrica.com or contact Michael Raimondo - IUCN South Africa Film Unit – michael.raimondo@iucn.org

 

Release of the 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species reveals ongoing decline of the status of plants and animals

May 2
The number of known threatened species reaches 16,119. The ranks of those facing extinction are joined by familiar species like the polar bear, hippopotamus and desert gazelles; together with ocean sharks, freshwater fish and Mediterranean flowers. Positive action has helped the white-tailed eagle and offers a glimmer of hope to Indian vultures.
Full release - IUCN Red List 2006

SASOL Birdlife South Africa National Bird Week From 1 to 7 May 2006
20 April 2006
BirdLife South Africa launches the Sasol BirdLife South Africa National Bird Week on 1 May 2006 as a national bird awareness and conservation initiative in South Africa that will focus on birds, their habitats and conservation needs. The Sasol BirdLife South Africa National Bird Week from 1 to 7 May 2006 builds on the success of other national environmental events that focus on issues such world environment day, trees, marine environment and water. BirdLife South Africa reaches out to all South Africans with a message that the vast diversity of birds that decorate the South African landscape will not be there forever if we don’t implement appropriate conservation strategies to ensure their survival.

For more information visit: www.birdlife.co.za

Teleseminar by Mr Clapperton Mavhunga & Dr Wolfram Dressler
April 20
The Transboundary Protected Areas Research Initiative in collaboration with IUCN-SA invites you to a Teleseminar on: "On the Local Community: What Language for Engagement?"

For more information:Teleconference


 

 

Woman gathering fruit. Photo: PhytoTrade AfricaIUCN-SA and PhytoTrade Africa launch "Natural Futures" [+]