Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Sergei Donskoy met with President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Zhang Sinshenom.
The meeting was held within the framework of the IUCN World Park Congress which is now taking place in Australia. The participants discussed issues of international cooperation in the conservation of natural resources and participated in the roundtable on the conservation of wild cats in Russia.
During the meeting, the IUCN President took special interest in the system of management of Russian reserves and national parks and the experience of solving environmental problems in Russia. Zhang Xinsheng also shared his impressions of the Russian exposition with the Minister, pointing to the professionalism and the representativeness of the Russian delegation.
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Then Donskoy and Xinsheng participated in the roundtable dedicated to the preservation of wild cats in Russia. At the meeting experts presented information on the status of populations of rare felines - the Amur tiger, Amur leopard, snow leopard and Pallas’s cat.
"Some members of our audience were amazed by the very existence of tigers and leopards in the harsh Russian climatic conditions, since these animals are traditionally considered the inhabitants of warm countries, - said Elena Salmanova, Deputy Director of Land of the Leopard National Park. - At the same time, the knowledgeable audience appreciated our work on the conservation of wild cats."
At the end of the roundtable the organizers summarized the results of the public voting for the name of a young tigress from Sikhote-Alin Reserve and a snow leopard kitten from Sayano-Shushensky Reserve. Most of the participants voted for the name Sydney for the snow leopard. The tigress was called Victoria, in honor of one of the states of Australia.
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The event brought together representatives of many countries where big cats live, including Iran, Pakistan, China, India, Mongolia, Kazakhstan. According to experts, the contacts received will enhance cooperation in this field.
Given the interest in Russian activities in the field of biological and landscape diversity, the Russian delegation held a special roundtable on the work of cross-border nature reserves. The experts shared their experience of interaction between Finland Paanajarvi National Park and Kostomukshsky Reserve, Katun Reserve and Kazakhstan Katon-Karagaiskiy National Park, Daurskiy Reserve and Chinese and Mongolian reserves.
Special attention was paid to conservation of cultural landscapes in national parks and reserves.
Experts from «Reserves» (Zapovedniki) Eco Center and Kenozersky National Park spoke on the experience of cooperation between PAs and local population.
The 6th IUCN World Parks Congress was organized by the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The Congress is being held from 12 to 19 November in Sydney, Australia. Representatives of the Russian Geographical Society are attending it.
The previous Congress took place in 2003 in South Africa and in 1992 in Venezuela.