Search the SPREP Catalogue

The Sixth South Pacific Conference on Nature Conservation and Protected Areas held in Palikir, Federated States of Micronesia, on 29 September – 3 October 1997, continued the series of nature conservation conferences held in New Zealand (1975), Australia (1979), Western Samoa (1985), Vanuatu (1989) and Tonga (1993).

In recognition of the need for National Parks and protected areas in the South Pacific, the New Zealand Government hosted the First South Pacific Conference on National Parks and Reserves in 1975, in association with the South Pacific Commission (SPC) and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This meeting was at Ministerial. A second South Pacific Conference on National Parks and Reserves, also at Ministerial level, was held in 1979 in Australia. This was hosted by the Australian Government and the Government of New South Wales, which adopted the conference as one of the events celebrating the Centennial of the Royal NationaL Park as the first national park in Australia. The 1979 Conference decided that the third Conference should be hosted by a Pacific Island country.

This is the Verbatim Transcript, Volume 2 proceeedings of the second South Pacific Conference on National Parks and Reserves held in April 1979 in Sydney Australia

The concept of “sustainable development” dates back a long time, but it was at the United Nations (UN) Conference on Human Environment (Stockholm, 1972) that the international community met for the first time to consider global environment and development needs, to define principles for the preservation and enhancement of the natural environment and to highlight the need to support people in this process. Later, in 1992, at the UN Conference on Environment and Development, 178 heads of state adopted three important documents: a comprehensive plan of action entitled Agenda 21, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the Statement of Principles for the Sustainable Management of Forests.

Our political and economic relations with Australia, the United States, Canada, Japan and the countries of South- East Asia are of particular importance. Almost half of our overseas trade is with Pacific countries, and this is growing steadily. As part of our good neighbour policy, we have tried to help in the economic development of other island states also, and to increase trade "between South Pacific countries. An important reason why New Zealand and its neighbours have become very closely associated, has been the movement of Pacific peoples to this country. Some are New Zealand citizens, and move freely back and forth. The Treaty of Friendship signed in August 1962, for instance, has maintained our long-standing association with Western Samoa, and has resulted in a steady flow of immigrants from that country.

The Sixth South Pacific Conference on Nature Conservation and Protected Areas was hosted by the Federated States of Micronesia in the State of Pohnpei from 29 September – 3 October 1997.

This file is the proceedings of the 4th South Pacific Conference of Nature Conservation and Protected Areas: Volume 2 - Papers, Keynotes, Themes and Case studies. Held in Port Vila Vanuatu September 1989