Figure 6—Accredited training of wilderness management professionals from 20 nations, as part of the 8th WWC, was part of WILD’s ongoing international commitment to assist, inform, and train managers responsible for wilderness and wildland areas. Photo by Vance G. Martin.
Network includes The WILD Foundation, the Wilderness Leadership School, the Wilderness Foundation South Africa, the Wilderness Foundation UK, and the newly forming Wilderness Foundation in Germany. The Wilderness Leadership School in South Africa was the first organization founded by Dr. Player, and remains the spiritual heart of The Wilderness Network. Established in 1963, it dared to pioneer multiracial environmental programs in South Africa during apartheid, and set a new international standard for wilderness experience programs. More than 35,000 people have participated in these programs in small groups of no more than eight people, on foot, in the wilderness. The Wilderness Foundation South Africa, directed by Andrew Muir, was established in 1972 and is the leader in South Africa in wilderness advocacy, wildland management projects, and experiential wilderness projects. It has pioneered numerous innovative programs that apply conservation solutions to significant social issues (such as AIDS, poverty, disadvantaged communities, etc.), while fostering leadership development, enhanced self-esteem, and cultural identity. Working with the Global Environmental Facility of the World Bank and other international development organizations, it also has created new models of cooperative, nongovernmental, large-scale land conservation in the Baviaanskloof Wilderness Area, the Wild Coast, and elsewhere in South Africa. The Wilderness Foundation UK was founded in 1976. Currently directed by Jo Roberts, it offers a rich program of 6 | The Wild Planet Project | May 2007
wilderness trail experiences in Scotland, Wales, Britain, northern Europe, and Kenya, while working and collaborating on numerous practical conservation projects. One of these is Wild Britain, developed by trustee Toby Aykroyd, demonstrating that wild areas in Britain can bring economic and social benefits to farmers and landowners, people in local communities, as well as to the inhabitants of London. After 33 years of working internationally, WILD is more convinced than ever of the importance of collaborative networks—of informed, inspired, and effective people and organizations—that can maximize donor funding, reduce expenses through shared travel and work, and use local expertise whenever possible.
The World Wilderness Congress This report closes with an overview of WILD’s flagship project, the World Wilderness Congress (WWC), the conservation initiative that unites The Wilderness Network with many other cooperating organizations, institutions, and individuals. The Congress is also where innovation and collaboration converge to generate significant, practical conservation results. The WWC is the world’s longest-running international and public environmental forum (see IJW, December 1998, April 2001, December 2005). Since 1977 it has convened eight times: in South Africa (1977), Australia (1980), Scotland (1983), United States (1987, Colorado), Norway (1993), India (1998), South Africa (2001), and United States (2005, Alaska). At every Congress, results include new
funding, new protected areas, new laws and policies, and more. A very few of these practical results are: • Native involvement in conservation— Indigenous groups have responsibility for millions of square kilometers of wildlands and seas around the world, and contain traditional knowledge of inherent value to the conservation of these lands and the services they provide. In 1977, during the apartheid era in South Africa, the 1st WWC convened native people with conservationists, businesspeople, and government representatives for the first time. This integration of native cultures in WILD and WWC work has grown constantly through the years, while at the same time other conservation organizations have come under heavy criticism for ignoring native needs and issues. Most recently, at the 8th WWC, the first Native Lands and Wilderness Council was convened, organized and implemented by native leaders, and funded through WILD by the Christensen Fund, the Thoresen Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and others. • New protected areas—In 1980, at the 2nd WWC in Cairns, Australia, new protected areas were declared in Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef, and the Tasmanian wilderness struggle was launched on to the international scene by Bob Brown and his colleagues. Almost every WWC
Figure 7—The International Journal of Wilderness is an ongoing cornerstone of WILD’s publishing program, complementing the other books and materials produced annually.