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| From 6-13 November, 2009 WILD9 convened in Merida, Mexico with 1800 on-site delegates from 50 nations, and over 10,000 online participants from 100 nations. The Congress Opened by President Felipe Calderon, and featured 50 world leaders such as Dr. Jane Goodall; Dr. Sylvia Earle; Dr Pavan Sukhdev; Chief Tashka Yawanawa; Grand Chief Samuel Gargan; numerous Ministers; the heads of land management agencies from North America and other regions; Heinz Center Director Dr. Thomas Lovejoy; Nobel laureate Mario Molina; Dr. Amory Lovins; Dr Exequiel Ezcurra; and many others. Other outcomes include:
•44 targeted resolutions adopted, and available online for discussion and reporting on outcomes;
•The Message from Merida (El Mensaje de Merida): An international call to action with specific policy guidelines to integrate wilderness and biodiversity conservation into global climate change strategy. Delivered to Copenhagen with 75 organizational co-signers and still growing.
•The first international agreement on wilderness conservation, initiated by WILD and signed by the governments of Mexico, Canada and the US;
•The first-ever Corporate Commitment to Wilderness, a results-oriented initiative for wilderness, signed initially by 15 corporations, with others to follow;
•New protected areas in Mexico and elsewhere, including: a new private sector commitment of 50,000 hectares in the Carpathian mountains (Romania); the intention to create the first marine wilderness areas in the US and territories; a new coastal, Mangrove protected area in Mexico; and the commitment to significantly increase protected area coverage in the Yucatan;
•Emphasis on Young Professionals -- Engaging young leaders on substantive issues of wilderness, biodiversity and climate change;
•Creation of six new Intergovernmental Working Groups involving US, Canadian, Mexican, and other government agencies to stimulate ongoing collaboration on conservation matters concerning Payments for Ecosystem Services, Marine Wilderness, Recreation & Visitor Experience, Fire Management, Wildlife & Biodiversity, and Public-Private Partnerships;
•Extensive Government agency collaboration NGO and indigenous partners to strengthen peer-to-peer networks and produce numerous targeted trainings, including:
oThe 2nd Global Wilderness Forum for Government Agencies,
oWilderness Management Training (for 25 professionals from 15 countries and 4 tribal communities),
oFour-part Payments for Ecosystem Services workshop,
oClimate Change Training for Protected Area Managers,
oWilderness Policy for Latin American Attorneys,
oFour-part Global Wildlands Connectivity workshop,
oThe 2nd meeting of the Native Lands and Wilderness Council,
oWildland Watershed Management,
oScience and Stewardship sessions involving 200 professionals; and more;
•Media and Culture – Integrating culture and public opinion with science and policy, through:
oLaunching the new concept of wilderness as tierras silvestres (wilderness) in Latin American public awareness, professional endeavor and cultural milieu
oThe largest gathering ever assembled of conservation photographers and their work;
oExtensive use of new, web-based communications tools to reach a large and diverse group of international participants beyond the delegates at WILD9;
oThe world’s first series of postage stamps dedicated to international wilderness (featuring Russia, South Africa, Mexico and the US) produced by Unidos para la Conservación/WILD and the Mexican Postal Service, initiated at WILD9 by Mexico President Felipe Calderon;
oEstablishment of the International League of Conservation Writers
oExtraordinarily wide media coverage in national newspapers and main-stream magazines (such as Este Pais, Elle, National Geographic, in-flight magazines, etc);
oThe launch of 3 books published in Spanish and English on wilderness and protected areas;
oDaily participation in the WILD9 Expo by thousands of Merida residents, including local school groups of all ages;
o Other outreach and cultural firsts such as: a project with local charities to create 20 life-size jaguar sculptures which now decorate the city of Merida; and “Body Painting - Applying the Ancient Art to Endangered Species and Spaces,” a stunning evening exhibition by 20 artists and models documented by five of the world’s top conservation photographers;
•Marine –
oThe formal launch of the Marine Wilderness Collaborative (MWC) to engage stakeholders in a consensus-driven process to define the term “marine wilderness” and set common objectives for the management of marine wilderness protected areas;
oLaunch of a “New Vision for Protecting the Marine Wilderness of the Gulf of California”
•Wilderness and Water – Announcements by the Government of Mexico including:
oA new national standard starting in 2010, that sets minimum standards of adequate water flow in rivers to support wild lands and natural systems; and,
oA national inventory of wetlands to determine the current state of these ecosystems, learn about the goods and services it provides and consider measures for conservation and sustainable management.
More information about the outcomes of WILD9, including photos and video footage of WILD9 sessions is available at www.wild.org. Contact Emily Loose, Director of Communications, emily@wild.org, or Vance G. Martin, President, vance@wild.org .
Emily Loose
Site Manager
The WILD Foundation
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