last updated: March17, 2005

Nature Forum 2005 concluded

see Declaration

top-left to right: Commisioner Dortalina of Bonaire and Minister Theodora-Brewster of Public Health, Carel Drijver, WWF-NL

The Nature Forum 2005 was held in Bonaire from February 27 till March 2, 2005. It brought together more than forty experts in the field of nature conservation. Representatives of government agencies and non-governmental organizations and specialists involved in nature conservation participated in the Forum, to discuss the current status, the latest developments in the field, and the future of nature conservation in the six islands. Much attention was given to the recently established Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA). This inter-island cooperative will help to strengthen nature conservation and position Dutch Caribbean biodiversity internationally and in the Netherlands, emphasizing that the Dutch Caribbean has the richest biodiversity of the Kingdom. The Dutch National Postal Code Lottery was thanked for its support for these developments.
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Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance optimistic about Nature Trust Fund

Curacao, 21 February 2005 -- Friday February 25 will see the first full board meeting of the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA). DCNA is an alliance of nature conservation and park management organizations of all Antillean islands assisted by the Environment and Nature Department (MINA) of the Ministry of Health and Social Development. The formal launching of the DCNA will also mean that negotiations with the Netherlands government and other potential donors on assuring the future of terrestrial and marine based nature conservations parks in the islands can now go full ahead. DCNA will be establishing a Nature Trust Fund for the Dutch Caribbean, which will consolidate the financial operations of at least one terrestrial and one marine park on each of the islands. >>... read more ...>>

Inaugural meeting of Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance – DCNA

June, 2004. At an inaugural meeting in St. Maarten of the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance, or DCNA, the joint nature park organizations of the islands of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba unanimously agreed on a three year work plan and action plan for the remainder of 2004. The work of the DCNA will be to promote Dutch Caribbean nature abroad in order to look for urgently needed additional funding, pool the resources of the nature park organizations, set up a website to provide centralized information on all the parks, and develop management effectiveness benchmarks. Working together through the DCNA the parks are determined to do their utmost to achieve financial sustainability and safeguard nature conservation in the Dutch Caribbean.

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Proceedings of Nature Forum 2002 in St. Maarten now available as PDF file (3.6 MB)

The Proceedings of the Nature Forum in St. Maarten in 2002 are finally available as a pdf file (3.6 MB)

Emergency meeting of nature conservation management organizations

On October 16 and 17, 2003, an emergency meeting of the protected area management organizations of all the islands was called to discuss the financial situations of the organizations, particularly of St. Maarten and St. Eustatius, the latter having closed from lack of income as of October 1, and St. Maarten on the brink of closing per Nov. 1 from lack of salaries...>>read more>>