Bonn, 16 November 2015 - Nicola Crockford is well known in AEWA (and CMS) circles – as RSPB’s International Species Policy Officer and BirdLife International’s focal point for the Convention on Migratory Species and some of its avian instruments. She is a regular attendee at COPs, MOPs, and meetings of Standing and Advisory Committees as well as working groups.

Nicola says “AEWA has led the way in showing how CMS avian objectives can be delivered.  It is fortunate in having developed an incredibly dedicated and expert community devoted to supporting its implementation, not least the superb Secretariat, Technical Committee and a number of visionary and committed Parties”.

For BirdLife International it is a relief to be able to share the technical load with other experts from both within and beyond NGOs. The Single Species Action Plans and Working Groups developed by AEWA provide a robust model of how to assemble a diverse constituency to deliver effective on-the-ground conservation action.  It is this model that is the basis for the new thematic CMS working groups on poisoning, energy and illegal killing of birds, all of which AEWA has had a major hand in establishing.  Not only this, but AEWA meetings have provided some of the best ever early-morning birdwatching and field trips!

As far as her favourite species is concerned, Nicola chose the Eurasian Curlew. Having been the chair of the Slender-billed Curlew Working Group since 2008, and run a major search of the non-breeding range, involving sending expert teams out over more than 30 countries, which failed to prove the continued existence of the species, Nicola is keen to ensure that the Eurasian Curlew, already showing signs of serious decline, does not follow in the footsteps of its cousin towards extinction. 

A current highlight is the AEWA SSAP for Eurasian Curlew – adopted at MOP6 – which will be extremely important for facilitating concerted action for the species, and will hopefully emulate the AEWA SSAP for the Black-tailed Godwit which is already proving to be a success.  “In the UK, the RSPB has already taken the step of making Eurasian Curlew one of its very top priority species for UK conservation action, establishing a full time post to implement the UK action plan for the species.  AEWA’s involvement in the new EU multispecies action plan for eight grassland breeding waders, including the curlew, the godwit, oystercatcher, dunlin, redshank, snipe, ruff and dunlin, is also very welcome”, says Nicola.