Local scientist Dr Miranda Bane from the Guernsey Pollinator Project and Roland Gauvain, Alderney Wildlife Trust will be presenting online at the UK and Overseas Territories Conservation Forum.
The forums runs from 2nd to 10th March 2021 and they will be presenting alongside Lord Zac Goldsmith, international government ministers, scientists and conservation representatives from across the world.
Dr Bane says: “We’re really pleased to be included in the programme alongside the Alderney Wildlife Trust and the government of Jersey, but the breadth of contributions from territories as far afield as the Turks and Caicos, Tristan da Cunha and Montserrat will make this an especially interesting four days.
“And yes, we will be making sure everyone knows what a beautiful environment we live in. We may not have blue iguanas, mountain chickens or spiky yellow woodlice, but the Bailiwick’s our blond hedgehogs, mole crickets and hairy footed bees are as fascinating as any wildlife.
“I’ve been asked if there is anything relevant we can learn from other small, but quite different islands. There are two answers to that; firstly, we are all bound by international goals such as the Aichi targets, and each island can learn from other’s approaches for achieving those. Secondly, we can see from the programme that several island governments have focused on the link between tourism and conservation and ecosystem restoration – all important aspects of conservation on Guernsey.
“Some islands are significantly more advanced in their work so there is a lot we can learn to help us achieve our own Nature Strategy goals. It’s very relevant and important to be attending.
“For our presentation, we were asked to talk about challenges and solutions to island conservation. We are lucky that we don’t have to cope with natural disasters like erupting volcanoes and hurricanes which other islands are faced with.
“One of our great challenges is a lack of understanding of what is happening to pollinators and therefore a clear target for our islands’ biodiversity. I’ll be presenting some of the Pollinator Project’s citizen science work that has helped us address this issue. We are thrilled to have the ongoing participation of islanders in our projects, especially monitoring bumblebees found in Guernsey, with the Bumblr app, with over 6000 sightings in 2020. We will present some of the recent results from Bumblr; our strategy to monitor pollinators going forward and exciting plans for projects in collaboration with Jersey.”
Roland Gauvain added “Over the last 20 years these meetings between the UK’s Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories have proven themselves extremely valuable. We are small, largely independent, islands with rich cultures and dynamic diverse wildlife, but we are not immune to profound global and local environmental pressures, so the opportunity to share knowledge and experience is crucial. For us here in Alderney when faced with the challenge of putting nature into recovery, the only way forward is collaboration and teamwork.”
The conference “Staying Connected for Conservation in a Changed World” is open to all and more details can be found at online here. It runs over 4 days 2nd-3rd and 9th to 10th March.
