It
is with great sadness that the AEWA Secretariat has learned
of the passing away of Professor Heribert Kalchreuter on
14 March 2010. “‘Herby’, as many people
who knew him well used to call him, played an instrumental
role in the development and negotiation of the Agreement
on the Conservation of the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds
(AEWA). Although a passionate hunter, he was able to bridge
the gap between hunters and nature conservationists through
his pragmatic and diplomatic approach. By doing this, he
paved the way for reaching a consensus between hunters and
conservationists during the AEWA Negotiation Meeting in
June 1995 in The Hague, the Netherlands, which resulted
in the conclusion of AEWA on 16th of June.” said Dr.
Gerard C. Boere, Honorary Patron and one of the founding
fathers of AEWA.

Mr Kalchreuter remained involved in AEWA
activities and represented the International Council for
Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC) at the AEWA Technical
Committee from 1999 until 2005.

Heribert Kalchreuter studied geology and
forestry in Munich and gained his Diploma in Forestry at
the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, where he also
received his Doctorate in 1970. He undertook numerous study
tours throughout Europe and the Americas and was a lecturer
at the College of African Wildlife Management in the Republic
of Tanzania. He went on to work for the Hunting Department
of the German Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and
Forestry. In 1994 he habilitated at the Agricultural University
of Poznan, Poland. In 2002, upon nomination by the University,
he was awarded a Professorship by the Polish President,
Alexander Kwasniewski. Mr Kalchreuter published numerous
publications,
including his two most famous books “Die Sache mit
der Jagd” and “Zurück in die Wildnis”.

“Herby was one of a kind. Many of
us enjoyed his stories about the time he spent in Tanzania
and Alaska; at the same time we valued him because of his
wealth of knowledge, in particular on waterbird hunting
and the conservation of Wood Cocks. We will miss him very
much and at the same time, we are very grateful to have
had the opportunity of meeting and closely working with
this extraordinary man. His dedication and personality will
most certainly not be forgotten but will serve as an inspiration
to others.” said Bert Lenten, Executive Secretary
of AEWA on behalf of the AEWA Secretariat.