Subject:  Launch of the Indian Bird Conservation Network (IBCN)

A network has been established to promote the conservation of
birds in India and, through them,  all biodiversity.  It comes
out of a workshop in late 1998 convened by Bombay Natural History
Society and attended 35 members of India’s conservation and
ornithological community, including Salim Centre for Ornithology
and Natural History (SACON),  Wildlife Institute of India (WII),
Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA), WWF,  and
individuals and NGOs.  The initiative was taken by BNHS, BirdLife
International and Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
(RSPB) of UK because they realised that there are many people and
institutions interested in bird conservation issues in India, but
their efforts could be made much more effective by sharing
information and ideas, and collaborating on state- or nation-wide
projects.

The Indian Bird Conservation Network (IBCN) will promote
conservation action based on sound research.  It will be open to
all those who share the view that the conservation of birds can
contribute to the conservation of all biodiversity,  and that
this is vital for the spiritual and material future of human
life.  The network will be non-political and transparent in all
its workings.  It will work through consensus building, and use
its strength in members and a co-ordinated approach to problems
to achieve maximum effectiveness.  It is planned that their will
be state co-ordinators to help the flow of information and to
bring local issues to the attention of the whole network.  To
start with, the network will be promoted more to those with
experience and professional interest in birds.  This will allow
the network to be established properly before being opened to a
general membership.  In time, however, the network will be open
to all who are interested,  and should become a vehicle for
educating and enthusing students and interested members of the
public about birds and through them, conservation.

BNHS has recently become the Indian partner of the global NGO
family, BirdLife International.  Through the BirdLife network,
BNHS has secured some support for the operation of the IBCN from
the RSPB, the UK BirdLife Partner, for the next five years.  This
will allow BNHS to produce a newsletter, facilitate the exchange
of information, and link members who can offer advice with those
who need it.  It will cover the costs of employing a network
co-ordinator to ensure that all of this happens.  Dissemination
of results to decision makers, conservationists, media and back
to the network members themselves will be an important part of
the co-ordinators role.

It is intended that as well as encouraging local projects, BNHS
will run nation-wide data gathering projects which all members of
the network can participate in.  The first of these will be the
Indian Important Bird Areas project. This project, part of a
global initiative by BirdLife International, uses the presence of
threatened or habitat-specific birds to identify a minimum  set
of sites for conservation.  The project will have major advocacy,
education and scientific components, and discussions have begun
about how it can complement and support the existing conservation
initiatives such as the Biodiversity Conservation Prioritisation
Project and the IIPA Review of Protected Areas.

NatHistory members will be kept informed about important
developments with the IBCN, but if you would like to receive
information personally, please contact BNHS at the following
address:

Network Manager
Indian Bird Conservation Network
Bombay Natural History Society
Hornbill House,
Shaheed Bhagat Singh Road,
Mumbai 400 023, India

Telephone: 091 022 2821811
Fax: 091 022 2837615