Cross-border nature conservation has been a tool to bring together parties with different political agendas.  It is also an essential means to protect landscapes that cross political boundaries within the larger landscape.  During my career, I have personally been involved in the creation of a belt of protected areas on the border between Lao PDR and Vietnam, thus protection the key habitat for a large number of threatened species in Indo-China.  In an earlier job, I was linked to the development of a trans-boundary protected area between Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe

There are some great examples of cross-border collaboration on nature conservation, and on 11 September at 14:30, IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas together with the German Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN) and the Korea National Park Service will host a workshop during the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Jeju, Korea, to review experiences of some of the most prominent recent trans-boundary initiatives in the world.  http://www.iucn.org/about/union/secretariat/offices/europe/europe_at_the_congress/member_s_activities/?10334/WORKSHOP-Sharing-Benefits-and-Values-from-Transboundary-Conservation

 Case studies will include the European Green Belt, (http://www.europeangreenbelt.org/), the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), cooperation in protected area management in South-Eastern Europe, The Biodiversity Corridor of Central America and the work on mountain conservation in the Himalayan region.  There will be speakers from many stakeholders including protected area management agencies, local government and NGOs.  Following a number of key presentations, there will be a moderated discussion between the panel of experts and the audience. This segment of the workshop will encourage open and interactive dialogue on the current state of and future prospects for trans-boundary conservation.  

If you are not planning to be at the IUCN Congress, but you are interested to learn more about these exciting initiatives, you will be able to get more information from hans.friederich@iucn.org.