The global Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund is again seeking
applications from Cambodia , Laos , Thailand and Vietnam for
funds to conserve the Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot.
A biodiversity hotspot is defined as biogeographic region with a significant reservoir of biodiversiy threatened by humans.
Scientists recognise Indo-Burma as one of 34 such hotspots.
CEPF says it supports high numbers of species, and its ecosystems
provide fresh water, protection against natural disasters, and other
essential services for hundreds of millions of people.
The
invitation to apply for funds is made to non-governmental
organisations, academic institutions, community groups and other civil
society organisations working in the region.
The money is
to help them design and implement projects with a particular emphasis on
protecting threatened species, managing priority sites and reconciling
biodiversity conservation and development objectives.
BirdLife International will manage the grants.
Applications close on September 30 and details can be found at www.birdlifeindo china.org/cepf or www.cepf.net
Applications were previously called in 2008 and 2009 with 180 received and almost 70 supported.
Funded projects included a grant to Vietnam NGO Education for Nature
Vietnam , to strengthen public participation in tackling the illegal
trade in wildlife, and a grant to Cambodian NGO Save Cambodia's
Wildlife, to empower local communities for biodiversity conservation
along the Sesan and Srepok Rivers .
"The CEPF grant
portfolio includes many important and innovative projects, which address
some of the highest conservation priorities in the region," said
BirdLife International, Indochina , Programme Manager Jonathan C.
Eames.
"This third and final call for proposals will be highly targeted, in order to address outstanding investment gaps."
The Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund is a joint initiative of
l'Agence Française de Deloppement, Conservation International, the
Global Environment Facility, the Government of Japan, the John D. and
Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the World Bank.
A fundamental goal is to ensure civil society is engaged in biodiversity conservation.
CEPF began a 9.5 million USD, five-year investment plan in Indochina
in June 2008 with BirdLife International acting as its Regional
Implementation Team.
Guided by a strategy developed with
the participation of stakeholders, CEPF investment in the region focuses
on two biodiversity corridors: the Northern Highlands Limestone (in
Vietnam and parts of southern China ); and the Mekong River and
Major Tributaries (in Cambodia , Laos and Thailand ).
The CEPF strategy, or ‘Ecosystem Profile', can be found at
www.cepf.net. Further information and summaries in English, Khmer, Lao,
Thai and Vietnamese can be found at www.birdlifeindochina. org/cepf./.
