World Migratory Bird Day this year breaks new ground with the campaign being a joint exercise between UN Environment's Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) and the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) on the one hand, and Environment for the Americas (EFTA) on the other. As well as unifying their voices in the cause of bird conservation, as part of the UN Environment's broader campaign to combat pollution, AEWA and CMS hope to learn from EFTA's experience of conservation work in the Americas.

The 39th Session of the World Heritage Committee is meeting in Bonn, a stone’s throw from the headquarters of the Convention on Migratory Species and several of its associated agreements. Jacques Trouvilliez, Executive Secretary of the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA), and Rüdiger Strempel, Secretary of the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat, examine the importance of those sites inscribed in the list for their natural rather than cultural qualities.

Reports of elephants and rhino being massacred for their tusks or horns due to demand in Asia often make the headlines. But illegal activities are not confined to trade in luxury items destined for markets in Asia – serious infractions of conservation law are happening in Europe too. Some countries have not fully transposed their commitments under international treaties and EU law in national legislation. Sometimes, excellent provisions contained in national laws are not effectively enforced. In other cases, such as skylarks, the number of animals taken legally are unsustainable. To prevent further declines, more realistic quotas should be set and better management measures adopted.

Le contraste est tellement grand entre les étendues gelées et vides du Grand Nord et les déserts brûlants, les forêts tropicales humides et les savanes de l’Afrique, que tout lien direct entre ces deux extrêmes semble tenu, si tant est que le moindre lien existe. Et pourtant, les oiseaux migrateurs font ce lien au niveau environnemental, rattachant l’Arctique et l’Afrique, et sont la raison pour laquelle l’Accord de l’ONU sur la conservation des oiseaux d’eau migrateurs d’Afrique-Eurasie (AEWA-UNEP) et le groupe de travail sur la biodiversité du Conseil Arctique - Conservation de la Flore et de la Faune Arctiques (CAFF) - ont passé un accord de coopération.