Abu Dhabi, 16 March 2017 – Twenty-three countries agreed to enhance efforts to help local communities to better protect dugongs, also known as sea cows, and their seagrass habitats. The endangered species, which is primarily threatened by entanglement in fishing gear, collision with boats and habitat loss, occurs across the East coast of Africa, South-East Asia, Pacific Islands and Australia. Government officials, and the world’s leading dugong and seagrass experts, met this week in Abu Dhabi to discuss solutions to stop the rapid decline of dugongs and the seagrass meadows where they live.

Abu Dhabi, 13 March 2017 – Delegates from twenty-three countries, along with the world’s leading dugong and seagrass experts, gather today under the auspices of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) for the opening of the Third Meeting of Signatories (MOS3) to Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation and Management of Dugongs and their Habitats (Dugong MOU).

Dr. Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudiis, UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment, and Dr. Bradnee Chambers, Executive Secretary of CMS, collaborated on an Op-Ed highlighting the need for seagrass conservation and its impact on marine life around the globe.

The ASCOBANS Secretariat acts as the coordinating body of the Agreement. It evolved from humble beginnings in Cambridge, UK, has moved location a number of times and is today located in Bonn, Germany.

Raising awareness and engaging the public is an important aspect of nature conservation. People protect what they care about, and to care, some knowledge is necessary. People power also drives action by governments and the private sector. It is the same for ASCOBANS. Institutions and people throughout the Agreement Area play an important role in spreading the word about threats and dangers to marine mammals, and ways in which each person can help.

A recent report on the health of the ocean found that worldwide the marine vertebrate population declined by 49 per cent between 1970 and 2012 (see WWF/ZSL Living Blue Planet Report 2015). Globally, an estimated 300,000 small whales, dolphins and porpoises die each year from entanglement in fishing gear. Also in Europe, incidental catch is seen as the greatest threat to small cetaceans. However, the situation is much more complex than one might think.

From the early days of the Agreement, one population caused scientists, conservationists and governments special concern: the Baltic Harbour Porpoise.

The preamble to the Agreement text negotiated in the early 1990s already makes it clear: “Aware that the population of harbour porpoises of the Baltic Sea has drastically decreased,” and “Concerned about the status of small cetaceans in the Baltic and North Seas”. We have thus known for a long time that harbour porpoises in the Baltic Sea are in trouble. Twenty-five years later the problem is not solved yet. But we have come a long way. And the porpoises are still around!

In order to aid the implementation of Resolution 11.22, the Secretariat has developed draft Best Practice Guidelines.  They are intended to assist CMS Parties interested in improving existing natio

The sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties to ACCOBAMS – the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area – is being held in Monaco from 22 to 25 November. This is the third time that the MOP will have been hosted by the Principality of Monaco, which also serves as the Agreement’s depositary and provides the offices of the Secretariat.

CMS and OceanCare signed a Partnership Agreement today to formalize their cooperation to better conserve aquatic and marine migratory species. CMS Executive Secretary, Bradnee Chambers, and OceanCare President, Sigrid Lüber, signed the agreement in the margins of the 45th Meeting of the CMS Standing Committee taking place from 9 to 10 November in Bonn, Germany.