Globwetland Information System
The Globwetland Information System includes more than 140 Earth Observation (EO)-based products delivered to 50 wetland sites in 21 countries during the Globwetland project. The products were designed to meet the needs of wetland managers, and can be divided into two main categories: Core and Specidic products. The core products represent the basic set of common geo-information that was generated for the majority of the 50 wetland areas selected for the project and includes three main layers of information: land-use and land-cover map, a long-term change analysis map, and a water cycle regime map. The Specific products represent a number of site-specific maps generated in response to precise requests from wetland managers to better monitor and assess different local conditions. They included water quality parameters, topographic (coastal) dynamics, and Digital Elevation Models (DEMs), among others. For more information on this project, please see www.globwetland.org.
World Bird Database (WBDB)
BirdLife International has been investing in the development of information management tools to support the activities of the Partnership for many years. This is a fully relational database, known as the World Bird Database (WBDB). You can search for detailed information on Species, Sites and Endemice Bird Areas (EBAs), see examples of recent analyses and download subsets of the database. There is information on some 10,000 species of bird, over 8,000 IBAs and 218 EBAs managed through the WBDB, together with BirdLife's spatial data, multimedia files, other documents and links. For more information on this project, please go to World Bird Database (WBDB).
World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA)
The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) is compiled from multiple sources and is the most comprehensive global dataset on marine and terrestrial protected areas available. It is a joint venture of UNEP and IUCN, produced by UNEP-WCMC and the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (IUCN-WCPA) working with governments and collaborating NGOs. The WDPA stores key information about protected areas such as name, designation or convention, total area (including marine area), date of establishment, legal status and IUCN Protected Areas Management Category. It also stores the spatial boundary and/or location (where available) for each protected area in a Geographical Information System (GIS). The online WDPA allows users to search by protected area name, country, and international programme or convention. For more information on this project, please go to World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA).
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species provides taxonomic, conservation status and distribution information on taxa that have been globally evaluated using the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. This system is designed to determine the relative risk of extinction, and the main purpose of the IUCN Red List is to catalogue and highlight those taxa that are facing a higher risk of global extinction (i.e. those listed as Critically Endangered, Endangered and Vulnerable). The IUCN Red List also includes information on taxa that are categorized as Extinct or Extinct in the Wild; on taxa that cannot be evaluated because of insufficient information (i.e. are Data Deficient); and on taxa that are either close to meeting the threatened thresholds or that would be threatened were it not for an ongoing taxon-specific conservation programme (i.e. are Near Threatened).
The CITES appendices
Appendices I, II and III to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora are lists of species afforded different levels or types of protection from over-exploitation. Appendix I lists species that are the most endangered among CITES-listed animals and plants. Appendix II lists species that are not necessarily now threatened with extinction but that may become so unless trade is closely controlled. Appendix III is a list of species included at the request of a Party that already regulates trade in the species and that needs the cooperation of other countries to prevent unsustainable or illegal exploitation.
Critical Sites Network Tool (Wings Over Wetlands project)
The Wings Over Wetlands (WOW) project is the largest initiative in the African-Eurasian region for the conservation of migratory waterbirds and their critical habitats. WOW aims to provide improved conservation and monitoring tools, enhanced capacity and partnerships towards the conservation of critical sites for migratory waterbirds.
WOW is supporting development of an electronic portal called the Critical Sites Network (CNS) tool. This will integrate information from three major databases for waterbirds: the Ramsar Sites Database, the International Waterbird Census Database and the World Bird Database. This will improve knowledge of the critical sites required by migratory waterbirds throughout Africa and Eurasia. The CSN tool will help decision-makers and planners at the local, national and international level identify which sites are part of the critical network for specific waterbirds, and help stakeholders to manage these site better. This tool will provide comprehensive data for over 400 migratory waterbird species, including all 236 species covered by the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement, and is expected to be on-line by the end of 2009. For more information on this project, please see www.wingsoverwetlands.org.