WWF in China

"China's development in the last decade proved that a win-win way can be found in boosting economic and social development, while better protecting environment." -- Xie Zhenhua, director of China's State Environmental Protection Administration.

As the first international conservation organization to be invited into China to conduct fieldwork, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in 2005 will celebrate its 25th anniversary of working in China. In 1979, the WWF signed an international agreement with China establishing a six-member WWF-China committee to coordinate links between conservation organizations and authorities in China and WWF's worldwide conservation network. Today, more than 60 staff operate out of seven offices in China, working on 40 projects and a range of conservation issues, including climate change and energy, species protection, environmental education, forest management and freshwater resources.

China makes massive new commitment to high-altitude wetlands protection

The Chinese Government has designated nine new Ramsar Sites (wetlands of international importance), with a total surface area of nearly 400,000 hectares.

"This move will help safeguard the freshwater sources of Asia's most important rivers," said Jim Harkness, chief representative of WWF China, which assisted in the designation of the new Ramsar Sites.

Eight of the nine new Ramsar Sites are in Qinghai and Yunnan provinces and in the Tibet Autonomous Region, and are high-altitude marshes and lakes. The other new Ramsar Site, at the Shuangtai Estuary on the Liao River in Northeastern China, makes up part of what has been called "the world's largest reed bed."

The designation of the nine new Ramsar sites is an important milestone in the promotion of wetland conservation and "wise use" in the Himalayan High Mountains region, which is an international initiative of the WWF, the Ramsar Convention Secretariat and related neighbouring countries, including China.

China has 3.43 million hectare of wetlands protected under the Ramsar Convention. By the end of 2003, the Chinese Government had established 353 protected wetland areas with a total area of 1.448 million hectare, covering 40 percent of China's natural wetlands.

All of the new Ramsar Sites have very important hydrological functions, both locally and downstream, and are extremely valuable sites for migratory birds, including the endangered black-necked crane (Grus nigricollis).

Because of the relative isolation of the sites, some of them have high levels of endemism [ed. note: species that are native to a particular geographic area or continent], particularly with fish species, and they are vital sources of livelihood for the populations nearby.

WWF is working to conserve the area through education programmes, integrated community development and conservation, and integrated watershed management through partnership with all stakeholders.

For further information:

Caroline Liou, communications manager, WWF China. Tel: +86 10 6522 7100, ext. 3239. E-mail: caroline@wwfchina.org

Teachers help Beijing students learn the value of water through community service

Water supplies are strained in China's capital city, as elsewhere in Northern China. Using this as a theme, teachers participating in WWF China's Education Initiative for Water (EIW) are implementing projects in Beijing middle schools aimed at helping students develop an ethic of responsibility towards the environment through community-based projects.

At a recent workshop at Beijing Normal University, teachers described how, using water as a principal theme, they had engaged their students in real-world problem solving and community service. One teacher worked with students to develop and implement an awareness campaign on water usage in their community. At another Beijing school, students devised codes of practice for water emissions and worked with local businesses to get them to adhere to the codes. Another group of students successfully campaigned for the relocation of a polluting soy-sauce factory from their community to the Beijing suburbs.

EIW's principle goal is to build the capacity of teachers and students to develop an ethic of responsibility towards the environment through community-based projects. Designed as part of WWF China's Environmental Educators' Initiative, EIW focuses specifically on primary and middle school students in Beijing and introduces an alternative to the current educational system in the form of student-centred, active learning. There are currently 8 Beijing schools and more than 200 schoolchildren taking part in the EIW.

At the workshop, teachers participating in WWF's EIW projects were recognized for their outstanding achievements, since the inception of the project in 2001. In addition, teachers discussed how their experiences over the last three years could be magnified both in Beijing and beyond. Future workshops are being planned to disseminate EIW practices to other schools in Beijing, and an EIW handbook for teachers is also being prepared.

'It's very encouraging to see how enthusiastic teachers are about EIW. More schools are eager to get involved and learn how to implement EIW lessons and techniques into their curriculum,' said Zhang Yi, programme officer for WWF China's Education programme.

For further information:

Alex Marston, communications coordinator, WWF China Programme, Tel: +86 10 6522 7100, ext. 233. E-mail: alex@wwfchina.org

Learning centre transforms suburbs into stunning wetland

A WWF environmental learning centre has transformed a barren four-hectare wasteland area in the suburbs of Beijing into a stunning wetland ecosystem demonstration site, full of water lilies, green grass and clear water. The project, part of WWF’s Conservation Small Grants Fund programme, is the joint effort of a local middle school, Capital Normal University and WWF.

The learning centre -- which opened its doors in September, 2003 -- is a place where students and the general public can learn about biodiversity conservation. It is the first “Wetlands School” in China and has received recognition and support from the State Environmental Protection Administration, Wetlands International-China, Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission, Beijing Municipal Bureau of Forestry, the Ramsar Convention Implementing Office SFA, and the Beijing Municipal Commission of Education. Since its opening, the wetland school has accommodated hundreds of visitors, including college students doing research, school teachers receiving environmental training and the public coming to enjoy and learn about the environment. Recent activities include a winter camp themed “Wetlands, environment and our lives” to celebrate World Wetlands Day on February 2.

The project is part of WWF’s Conservation Small Grants Fund “Yangzhen Reed Wetlands” project, which takes place in the largest reed wetland in the Beijing area. The project aims to build a suitable environment for birds to breed in as well as maintain the area as a stopover for migrating birds in spring and autumn.

For further information: Caroline Liou, Communications Manager, WWF China. Tel: +86 10 6522 7100, ext. 3239. E-mail: caroline@wwfchina.org