Workshop:
“Action Plan for Conservation of Coastal Wetlands and Shore Birds at the Arid Coast of the South American Pacific”
The foundation Manfred-Hermsen-Stiftung successfully realized in cooperation with the Neotropic Center for Training in Wetlands (CNEH) a workshop from 25th to 26th of May 2018 in Valparaíso, Chile. The aim of this workshop was to conclude the elaboration of an action plan for conservation of coastal wetlands at the arid coastal region of Chile, Peru, and Ecuador.
The event began with a public seminar, where experts from NGOs and government offices gave interesting presentations concerning the topic of our workshop. Subsequently, we conducted a planning session with a group of 44 experts for revision of the action plan, the design of which we already had started at the 7th Meeting of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Group in November 2017 in Paracas, Peru.
The following day we visited together with the experts coming from other countries and a group of local actors the river mouth of the Río Aconcagua, where the Chilean Petroleum Company (ENAP) showed us around the nature-discovery park „Parque Ecológico La Isla“, they established together with the local Municipality of Concon. Afterwards we drove to the close by coastal wetland „Estero de Mantagua“, for the protection and restauration of which the owner of the guest house “Posada del Parque” is carrying out a remarkable work together with her partner.
This workshop was a further important step in the creation of a regional initiative for the protection of the coastal wetlands at the arid South American coast of the Pacific and the shore and water birds that rely on these habitats. With the input received throughout the workshop, there now is going to follow the first published version of the action plan, the execution of which we are looking to support in cooperation with the contributing organizations and local stakeholders.
We like to express our gratitude to all participants and supporters of the workshop, specially also to the speakers and their contributing institutions:
Rebeca Magaña, Ramsar CREHO, Panama
Fernando Angulo, Corbidi, Peru
Teddy Ochoa, Ministerio del Ambiente de Ecuador
Julián García, Soluciones Costeros, Mexico
Osvel Hinojosa, Soluciones Costeros, Mexico
Jimena Ibarra, Ministerio del Medio Ambiente de Chile
Claudia Silva, ONU Medio Ambiente, Chile
Héctor Aponte, Universidad Cientifica del Sur, Peru
Manuel Contreras López, Universidad de Playa Ancha, Chile
Carlos Zuleta, Universidad de La Serena, Chile
Elier Tabilo, Centro Neotropical de Entrenamiento en Humedales, Chile
Cesar Chavez, Centro Neotropical de Entrenamiento en Humedales, Peru
Cristián Pérez, Global-Nomad, Chile
In this context, we especially like to highlight the role of the Regional Center for Training and Research in the Western Hemisphere (CREHO) of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, and the involvement of the Coastal Solutions Fellows Programme for protection of shorebirds and important habitats along the pacific coast of the Americas of the Cornell Lab for Ornithology and the David & Lucile Packard Foundation.