Science Planning Group on Ecosystem Approach meets in Kuala Lumpur
The ICSU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP) Science Planning Group on Ecosystem Approach in Water Management and Food Systems met in Kuala Lumpur on 16 and 17 July to plan the agenda for research in Asia and the Pacific. In attendance were Muhamad Awang (Universiti Putra Malaysia – Chair), Nguyen Huang Tri (Center for Environmental Research and Education, Vietnam), Clarice Wilson (Institute of Advanced Studies, United Nations University (UNU), Japan) and Nordin Hasan (ICSU ROAP – Ex-officio ). Two other members of the planning group were unable to attend.
The Planning Group examined the broad concept of the science underlying the ecosystem approach and noted that the approach was being used in many situations and programmes even when it was not called the “ecosystem approach”. Key amongst these were the initiatives under the auspices of the UNESCO Man and Biosphere (MAB) Programme, and the programmes established by the Ramsar Secretariat in the conservation and wise-use of wetland sites. ICSU is seeking a broader mandate for the approach and is in the process of developing plans that could enhance the application of the approach in water resources management and in food systems in Asia and the Pacific. Both the MAB and Ramsar programmes focus on the use of the approach in the management of protected areas. Presentations made at this meeting by the members of the planning group is available alng with other materials on the ecosystem approach, from the Resource Centre page of this website (under Materials on the Ecosystem Approach - http://www.icsu-asia-pacific.org/resourcecentre_EcosystemApproach.htm ).
The science plan on the ecosystem approach aims to guide the work of the ICSU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific in the next three to ten years in enhancing research activities towards a better understanding of the approach in Asia and the Pacific especially in areas where there are significant gaps in our knowledge of the approach. The meeting took note that follow-up work on the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment is also being planned and that the Institute of Advance Studies of the UNU has accepted a secretariat role for undertaking new sub-global ecosystem assessments (SGA). It is in the process of developing an SGA project in Japan based on the satoyama and satoumi concepts of landscape classification. Satoyama are areas found in rural districts that encompass human settlements and ecosystems that provide numerous vital services for human well-being and is created through prolonged interaction between humans and ecosystems, whereas satoumi are coastal and marine areas where human interaction has resulted in a higher degree of productivity and biodiversity. Another SGA has been proposed to be conducted in Malaysia .
As with the Science Plan for hazards and disasters, the plan for the ecosystem approach will be tabled to ICSU members and the science community, especially those from Asia and the Pacific region, at a Regional Consultation in Chiang Mai in November 2007. Should you have an interest in contributing to the development of the science plan for the ecosystem approach in the management of water and food systems, please contact us at secretariat@icsu-asia-pacific.org .
