The globe's most vulnerable communities are to benefit from a worldwide survey on wetlands
A WWT survey that invites anyone anywhere in the world, familiar with a wetland environment, to contribute will allow experts to take steps to help protect some of the globe’s most at-risk communities.
Until now, monitoring and correlating the condition of the world’s remaining wetlands has been met with many challenges, particularly in developing regions. So in order to try and gather more information than ever before, WWT has tailored a straightforward questionnaire, aimed at gathering people’s opinions on a known wetland.
The survey is expected to give an unprecedented picture of the current health of the earth’s wetlands, allowing WWT to offer solutions where it’s most needed, offering practical wetland management and skills in species recovery.
The results will allow WWT to build on projects already underway in Madagascar, Cambodia and Myanmar, where unsustainable developments have destroyed wetlands, threatening species numbers and devastating communities.
The 10-minute survey, created in partnership with WWT Consulting, the Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS Ramsar Section) the World Wetland Network (WWN), with the backing of the Ramsar Convention Secretariat, can be completed on-line in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Russian or Chinese until September 30, 2017.
Wetlands are a hotbed for biodiversity, but because they are often viewed as wastelands or unproductive, many are filled in or destroyed, meaning most of our wetlands have been lost, leaving the remaining ones vulnerable.
The results, which will be analyzed and announced early next year, are expected to give experts a much better understanding of how wetlands are performing around the globe.
Head of Wetland Link International at WWT Chris Rostron said:
“Our knowledge about the status and trends of the world’s wetlands is patchy and limited at best, particularly in developing nations. This affects our ability to inform wetland policy and decision-making where it’s most needed which is why this year we are conducting a simple worldwide questionnaire, open to anyone familiar with a wetland. This should give us a greater understanding of what’s going on across the globe and what action needs to be taken to protect the world’s wetlands.”
To take part in the survey, click here
