IISD RS @ Second Pew Whale Symposium - Highlights for Wednesday, 30 January 2008

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	Daily web coverage 30 January - 31 January


	Whale Symposium
	Bulletin
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	IISD RS coverage of the First Pew Whales Symposium

The Pew Tokyo Whale Symposium

L-R: Joshua S. Reichert, Managing Director, Pew Environment Group; Judge Neroni Slade, Chair of the Tokyo Whale Symposium; Dr. Srikantha Herath, Senior Academic Programme Officer and Officer-in-Charge of UNU’s Environment and Sustainable Development Programme; and Rémi Parmentier, Senior Policy Consultant, the Pew Environment Group


	Highlights for Wednesday, 30 January 2008 The Second Pew Whale Symposium, entitled “A change in climate for whales – Is there a common way forward?,” opened today at UN University (UNU) Headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. Joshua Reichert, Managing Director, Pew Environment Group, welcomed participants to the meeting. A welcome address was delivered by Srikantha Herath, UNU Environment and Sustainable Development Programme, on behalf of UNU Rector Konrad Osterwalder. Symposium Chair Tuiloma Neroni Slade, former judge at the International Criminal Court, addressed the current state of the whaling debate, highlighting main points of discussion. During a session entitled “The current state of the whaling debate: views from Japan,” presentations were made by: Joji Morishita, Japanese Fisheries Agency; Toshio Kasuya, independent cetacean specialist, Japan; and Jun Hoshikawa, Executive Director, Greenpeace Japan. Discussion focused on: the legitimacy and legality of scientific whaling; cultural aspects of whaling; public opinion; the compatibility of lethal and non-lethal uses of whales; and the economic value of whaling. The second session addressed “Conflict management and biodiversity: interactions between governments, NGOs and the private sector.” The presenters were: Akio Morishima, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Japan Climate Policy Centre; Juan Mayr, Former Environment Minister of Colombia; Olivier Deleuze, UNEP; and Sam Johnston, UNU Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS) on behalf of A.H. Zakri, Director of UNU IAS and Former Vice-President of the UN Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. Participants discussed: the role of science in guiding political decisions; parallels between whaling debates and other international negotiations; the importance of high-level participation in negotiations; and conflicting views on non-state actors’ involvement in the IWC. One participant announced that the tenth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP-10) may be held in Japan and suggested that it include a joint session with the International Whaling Commission.

Dr. Srikantha Herath, UNU

C. Scott Baker, Ph.D., Associate Director, Marine Mammal Program, Oregon State University

Philippa Brakes, Senior Biologist, Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

Dr. Toshio Kasuya, Japanese Cetacean scientist presents on the current state of the whaling debate from a scientific perspective

Joji Morishita, International Affairs Division of the Japanese Fisheries Agency, presents the Japanese government position on whaling

Professor Akio Morishima, Japan Climate Policy Center

Juan Mayr, Former Environment Minister of Colombia, speaks on experiences in the negotiations of the biosafety protocol

L-R: Joji Morishita, International Affairs Division of the Japanese Fisheries Agency, and Jun Hoshikawa, Executive Director, Greenpeace Japan

Stanley Johnson, Ambassador for the Convention on Migratory Species

Jun Hoshikawa, Executive Director, Greenpeace Japan

Martin Atherton, Caribbean Conservation Association (CCA)

José Truda Palazzo Jr., President International Wildlife Coalition, Brazil

Dr. Robert L. Brownell, Jr. Scientist for International Protected Resources, NOAA Fisheries, US

Bunny McDiarmid, Executive Director, Greenpeace, New Zealand

Mike Donoghue, Senior International Relations Officer, New Zealand Department of Conservation

The Wednesday afternoon session, “Conflict Management and Biodiversity: Interactions between Governments, NGOs and the Private Sector”. L-R: Sam Johnston, UNU; Olivier Deleuze, UNEP; Juan Mayr and Professor Akio Morishima

L-R: Professor Akio Morishima, Chair of the Board of Directors, Japan Climate Policy Center, discussing with Neroni Slade

L-R: Kelly Rigg, the Varda Group and Justin Kenny, the Pew Charitable Trusts


	Daily web coverage 30 January - 31 January

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	Related Links


	The Pew Tokyo Whale Symposium The Pew New York Symposium The Pew Charitable Trusts International Whaling Commission (IWC) Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Convention on Migratory Species (CMS)


	IISD RS resources


	IISD RS Biodiversity and Wildlife page IISD RS Water, Wetlands and Coasts page IISD RS coverage of the Eighth Conference of the Parties (COP-8) to the CMS, 20-25 November 2005, Nairobi, Kenya IISD RS coverage of the thirteenth Conference of the Parties (COP-13) to the CITES, 2-14 October 2004, Bangkok, Thailand IISD RS coverage of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group of the General Assembly to study issues relating to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction, 13-17 February 2006, United Nations headquarters, New York Linkages Update MEA-L African Regional Coverage


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